To read this content please select one of the options below:

Capable guardianship against identity theft: Demographic insights based on a national sample of US adults

Norah Ylang (School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Arizona State University, Phoenix, Arizona, USA)

Journal of Financial Crime

ISSN: 1359-0790

Article publication date: 22 January 2020

Issue publication date: 10 February 2020

560

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine demographic differences between individuals who do not take measures to protect themselves from identity theft victimization and those who do. A majority of the research on identity theft has focused on predictors of victimization, reporting behaviors of the victims and their health and mental outcomes. However, little remains known about the individuals who choose to take any identity-theft measures despite concerns over this fast-growing breed of crime.

Design/methodology/approach

Guided by Felson and Cohen’s routine activities theoretical framework (1979), this study uses the 2014 Identity Theft Supplement of the National Crime Victimization Survey to identify the demographic characteristics that influence the use of self-protection measures among individuals in the general population.

Findings

This study finds that these individuals are much more likely to be white, older, female and highly educated. The decision to undertake protection against identity theft is also influenced by the following factors: prior experience of misuse, possession of a bank account in the prior 12 months, current possession of at least one credit card and awareness that one is entitled to a free copy of one’s credit report.

Originality/value

This study addresses the gap in scholarship on identity theft prevention by applying the concept of guardianship in Cohen and Felson’s routine activity theory (1979) to the usage of self-protection measures in a general population. Future findings will identify the areas which agencies and researchers can focus on to inform policies that foster individuals’ own initiatives to take self-protection measures against potential identity theft.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The author thanks Kristy Holtfreter for her constructive feedback on earlier versions of this paper. A previous version of this article received the 2018 Outstanding Student Paper Award from the American Society of Criminology’s Division of White-Collar and Corporate Crime. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Norah Ylang, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Arizona State University, 411 N. Central Avenue, Phoenix, AZ, 85004.

Citation

Ylang, N. (2020), "Capable guardianship against identity theft: Demographic insights based on a national sample of US adults", Journal of Financial Crime, Vol. 27 No. 1, pp. 130-142. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFC-12-2018-0140

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited

Related articles