BECKLEY, W.Va. — West Virginia ranked fourth in states least vulnerable to identify theft, according to a recent survey.
The Mountain State ranked low in employment fraud complaints per capita and bank fraud complaints per capita, coming in fourth least in both, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center’s Data Breach Report.
Key findings in the survey found:
• There were just 80 identity theft complaints per 100,000 residents in West Virginia in 2015. This includes 41 government documents/benefits fraud complaints and 11 credit card fraud complaints per 100,000 residents.
The economics of West Virginia may help explain the ranking. Employment fraud could rank low because the state has the lowest civilian workforce population rate and one of the highest jobless benefit claims in the United States.
A large number of West Virginians also do not have either a banking or credit union account. In a 2013 report, The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy found 791 out of every 1,000 West Virginians are either unbanked or underbanked.
West Virginia’s high ranking on government documents/benefits fraud should not come as a surprise. Per capita, West Virginia has some of the highest levels of citizens receiving government assistance, from Social Security disability benefits to food stamps, according to the Social Security Administration.
Overall, West Virginia ranked above Kentucky and below Maine, the Identity Theft Resource Center’s Data Breach Report survey found.
South Dakota was the least vulnerable to identity theft, and the District of Columbia the most vulnerable, the survey found.
The first is to emphasize email security. This can be achieved by creating strong passwords for all financial accounts. Also, use established two-step verification on accounts.
Second, sign up for credit monitoring. This is the best way to keep tabs on credit reports.
Third, leverage account alerts and update contact information. Set up online management for all financial accounts, including loans, IRS, Social Security and credit cards. Keeping your email address, phone number and street address updated makes identity theft harder for hackers.
Finally, exercise common sense online. Suggestions include: Don’t open emails from unrecognized addresses, don’t send account numbers and passwords via email or instant messenger, and don’t enter financial and personal information into websites that lack the “http” prefix.
