Identity fraud is a major and growing concern in Colorado and throughout the nation.
With the advent of the computer age and associated technological advances, it has unfortunately become easier for criminals to steal the identities of decent citizens and use those identities to defraud merchants and financial institutions. There are various forms of identity fraud, but the crux of the offense is that the criminal engages in financial transactions while impersonating someone else. This results in the victimization of both the merchants and financial institutions which lose merchandise and money and of the impersonated citizen whose credit rating is decimated for years to come and who is left with to deal with the defrauded merchants and banks. Fraudulent driver licenses are part and parcel of most identity fraud schemes. Whether the perpetrator uses counterfeit checks or a bogus credit card, he or she is likely to be asked for identification during the course of any significant financial transaction.