From Identity Theft Resource Center

The History of the Identity theft Resource Center

Posted in: ITRC History
By Identity Theft Resource Center
Mar 17, 2011 - 2:12:07 PM

THE HISTORY of the IDENTITY THEFT RESOURCE CENTER®

1999

  • Under the umbrella of Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, Linda and Jay Foley founded the Identity Theft Resource Center, originally named VOICES (Victims of Crimes Extended Services) 2000
  • In Spring 2000, the name was changed to the Identity Theft Resource Center
  • The ITRC received recognition and a gold medal for Excellence in Service from the "Foundation for the Improvement of Justice"
  • First grant received from the California Consumer Protection Foundation
  • first ITRC Website started

2001

  • ITRC asked to participate in the California Department of Motor Vehicles Identity Theft taskforce
  • ITRC asked to participate in the California Attorney General Identity Theft Taskforce
  • Legislatively - ITRC influenced the introduction and passage of SB 125 (Alpert) which allowed victims access to the transaction and applicationrecords of fraudulent accounts opened in their names. This bill was a landmark bill and has since been adopted federally as part of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (section 609e).
  • ITRC's website expanded and considerable material was added to the site

2002

  • ITRC received a Certificate of Recognition by California Assemblyman Howard Wayne for exemplary and tireless efforts on the behalf of California consumers and victims of identity theft
  • Legislatively, SB 1254 (Alpert- expanded definition of identity theft and included information trafficking) and AB 2456 (Jackson- inmates forbidden to have access to personal identifying information during work release, community service, etc) were signed into law and ITRC was a technical advisor to legislators in several states including Texas.
  • ITRC formed a board of directors, an advisory board and filed to become a non-profit allowing it to separate from the umbrella of UCAN and Privacy Rights Clearinghouse.
  • ITRC undertook the arduous task of coordinating 22 county wide presentations about identity theft in one night with the help of local law enforcement and community organizations.
  • The ITRC website averaged 17,000-18,000 visitors monthly, with a high of nearly 34,000 visitors in December. It had expended considerably and was noted as one of the most comprehensive web sites on identity theft.

2003

  • ITRC incorporates in California and receives IRS 501(c)(3) nonprofit status
  • Commendation from California Gray Davis for dedicated staff of the ITRC and their invaluable contributions to the San Diego community
  • Received San Diego Bar Association Annual Award for Outstanding Service by a Distinguished Organization
  • ITRC became a technical advisor during the creation of the new FACT Act. In that capacity, ITRC staff worked with various federal Senators and House members and Mr. Wayne Abernathy, the Asst. Secretary of the Treasury
  • In Louisiana, Texas, California and other states, ITRC staff and volunteers helped to pass some vital legislation and continue to advise state Attorney Generals and legislators on bills for 2004.
  • Legislatively, ITRC advised California Senator Alpert in the creation and passage of SB 752 that recommended thumbprints be added to citations issued in cases when no identification document is available
  • ITRC was invited to serve as an advisor to the San Diego Police Department, Chula Vista Police Department, and San Diego District Attorney. *ITRC consulted with the FBI Cybercrimes Division and San Diego CATCH team *ITRC worked with the US Secret Service on a CD/video training program about identity theft.
  • ITRC's website visibility continues to grow, with a year-end total of 1,015,390 visitors and 12,774,407 hits
  • ITRC designed and published its first major study about identity theft victimization. Identity Theft- The Aftermath 2003 was released in September of 2003.
  • A collaborative work with a psychologist, business analyst and economics professor at California State University Sacramento, this study validated that victims of identity theft suffer the same emotional trauma as victims of rape, aggravated assault and repeated battering. The study included financial impact, time lost, impact on business, responsiveness of various entities with which victims interact, etc.

2004

  • ITRC received The 2004 Dept. of Justice National Crime Victims Service Award (click to http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/ncvrw/2004/2004bios.htm )
  • ITRC was commended by U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein for service and excellence
  • The ITRC worked as part of a taskforce advising on the federal Fair and Accurate Transactions Act.
  • Identity Theft: The Aftermath 2004 was created and published, confirming many of the conclusions found in the 2003 study.
  • The ITRC received a grant from the San Diego County Supervisors to expand identity theft education in the county. It did so through community fairs and a Roving Clinic held at Albertson's Supermarkets on Saturday afternoons (13 per month starting in October).

2005

  • ChoicePoint Corporation became a major multi-year sponsor of the ITRC
  • ITRC,along with Liberty Alliance, help an identity theft symposium - bringing together members of law enforcement, business and consumer advocacy groups - to discuss this crime in an open forum.
  • ITRC featured in Newsweek, July 4, 2005
  • ITRC featured in Time Magazine, July 31, 2005
  • ITRC serves as an advisor to the San Diego Police Department, Chula Vista Police Department, and the San Diego District Attorney. ITRC serves on a multi-jurisdictional taskforce that is studying the link between drugs and identity theft (ITRC also works with the FBI Cyber Crimes Division, San Diego CATCH team, the AUDIT program for CAUSE, IPSA, and the National Association of Attorneys General)
  • ITRC received the Time Magazine "50 Coolest Websites" award
  • ITRC received PC Magazine's "Top 101 Websites" award
  • A new Scam section and Student's Corner is added to the ITRC website
  • ITRC moves into its current office space and begins expansion of phone lines, computers, and staff.

2006

  • ITRC designed, wrote and produced their first teen video on identity theft, Stolen Futures, and made it available for free on its website, with funding provided by ChoicePoint.
  • ITRC worked with the Office of Victims of Crime (OVC) on various programs including a new handbook for victim advisors (done through the ILJ - please find out what this acronym stands for and use it) and a webcast on id theft for the OVC Web Forum.
  • ITRC featured in Reader's Digest, March 2006, focusing on child identity theft
  • ITRC provided major presentations for the National Association of Professional Background Screeners, American Bankers, National Association of Consumer Action Attorneys, ANSI-BBB Standards Forum, Washington State Governor's Conference on Identity Theft, Ohio State Attorney General's Conference on Identity Theft, and the California Governor's Conference on Identity Theft.
  • The ITRC developed a teen website section to provide materials for parents and teachers, as well as research information and games for teens to use
  • ITRC created a corporate overview packet, providing a clear and transparent view of the company
  • ITRC website was visited by 1,077,306 visitors, with 11,325,653 total hits, representing a 14% increase in visits over 2005.
  • ITRC provided victim assistance to 5,816 distinct identity theft
  • ITRC invited to serve as advisors to corporate entities regarding information handling
  • ITRC continued serving as advisors to federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies
  • ITRC provided major presentations for the National Association of Professional Background Screeners, American Bankers, National Association of Consumer Action Attorneys, ANSI-BBB Standards Forum, Washington State Governor's Conference on Identity Theft, Ohio State Attorney General's Conference on Identity Theft, and the California Governor's Conference on Identity Theft.
  • ITRC provided presentations at 52 separate events

2007

  • U.S. Department of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime, national grant award for identity theft assistance and education, 2007-2009
  • Created, deployed, analyzed and published the Identity Theft: The Aftermath 2006 study, the fourth in a series of studies conducted by the ITRC.
  • ITRC staff developed and published a completely new website to replace the former site (www.idtheftcenter.org). The new website features enhanced user friendliness, updated crime trends, victim Solutions and Fact Sheets, consumer education documents, and streaming video. An interactive "State and Local Resource Map" was also developed to make access to state laws and resources easy for the user. This has proven to be a very popular web page.
  • Trained ITRC staff members on website management, allowing ITRC to respond to needed changes in real time. The new website not only allows much easier navigation for the user, but also allows approximately 90% of the content on the site to be modified or updated by the ITRC staff on a moments notice.
  • The website is a critical tool in the ability of the ITRC to communicate with an ever increasing number of victims. The website is also in continuous use by law enforcement, business, government, and the financial community.
  • ITRC staff updated all existing ITRC Fact Sheets, researched and created additional Fact Sheets, and developed Solutions to reflect new laws and pertinent victim information. Totaling more than 230 documents, these were all prepared for publishing on the new ITRC website on May 10, 2007.
  • ITRC researched and developed more than 30 Fact Sheets and Solutions to be translated into Spanish for publishing on the website. These were translated under an in-kind grant from McElroy Translation in Austin, Texas. This makes us one of a very few repositories of Spanish information on identity theft.
  • The ITRC designed and populated a completely new database for compiling the 2007 breach list. This new tool allows the ITRC to track data breaches "real time" and post current comprehensive reports on the website in a few minutes. The 2007 breach list is updated every Tuesday morning. The new list allows us to list article attributions, to better organize breach information, and also lets us provide statistics regarding breach types and number of records exposed. Additionally, it gives positive attention to those who encrypt important information. The weekly reports on both breaches and statistics are available at: http://www.idtheftcenter.org/artman2/publish/lib_survey/Press_Release_-_2007_Breach_List.shtml
  • The ITRC participated in 53 events including keynote speaker opportunities, panels, seminars, trainings and community presentations.
  • Privacy and Identity Theft Case Study was presented in August 2007 by the ITRC during the national Privacy Symposium conducted at Harvard University.

2008

  • Deployed, analyzed and published Identity Theft: The Aftermath 2007, the fifth in a series of studies conducted by the ITRC. This study continues to be heavily used by researchers and the public. During the first 4 months from its publication, it was downloaded from the ITRC website 19,291 times.
  • A new collaborative relationship was established with the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) as it developed and implemented a nationally-recognized Protect Your Identity Week initiative.
  • Several partnerships have been established in an effort to expand and enhance services to victims. These include relationships with the Victims Initiative for Counseling, Advocacy, and Restoration of the Southwest (VICARS), the Crime Victim Enforcement Project of Central Arizona, Atlanta Victim Assistance, and the Maryland Crime Victims Resource Center.
  • The ITRC enhanced its ongoing efforts with San Diego County law enforcement and government agencies as we collaboratively conducted 36 presentations throughout San Diego as part of its "Identity Theft Awareness Day" on October 23, 2008.
  • The ITRC participated in more than 80 presentations, training and community events in 2008. This included two trainings for the IRS and a Global Innovation Outlook Symposium sponsored by IBM.
  • Privacy: Pre- and Post-Breach was presented in August 2008 during the national Privacy Symposium conducted at Harvard.
  • The ITRC participated on a panel for the ONC Medical Identity Theft Town Hall in Washington DC.
  • ITRC Breach Report and Breach Stats Report continue to be a large draw on the ITRC website. In addition, the ITRC produced 5 auxiliary reports from the breach database data, which were published three times in 2008, along with collaborative press releases. These reports allow us to identify trends, such as lost "data on the move".
  • Let's find out when Chinese documents were added
  • The ITRC's website reached new records: nearly 20 million hits for 2008 and more than 2.8 million page views during the year.

2009

  • ITRaC News, the ITRC's quarterly e-newsletter, was launched in Q1 2009
  • Established a toll-free, no-cost victim assistance hotline: (888) 400-5530
  • ITRC has established partnerships with various organizations and businesses such as:
    • National Cyber Forensics and Training Alliance (NCFTA) - Victim Assistance Communication Program
    • American National Standards Institute (ANSI) member
    • San Diego County District Attorney's Office cooperative agreement
    • ID Analytics - My ID Score consumer free website
    • Trend Micro - Partnership for consumer education
  • Provided consultation and input to legislators and regulators:
    • U.S Sentencing Commission Public Hearing, Washington DC
    • U.S. Supreme Court, amicus brief on identity theft
    • Oversight and Government Reform Committee - hearing on Identity Theft: A Victim's Bill of Rights
  • ITRC one of two organizations to guest-host a web forum for the OVC on "Child Identity Theft"
  • Deployed, analyzed and published Identity Theft: The Aftermath 2008, the 6th in a series of studies conducted by the ITRC under a grant from the Rose Foundation. This study continues to be heavily used by researchers and the public. During the first 4 weeks from its publication, it was downloaded from the ITRC website 2684 times. Provided direct victim assistance to more than 7,827people through 12/31/2009.

2010

  • In October 2010, the ITRC was not only a finalist in Securing Our eCity's Cybersecurity Awards, but was named category winner in Awareness.
  • The U.S. Congressional Victims' Rights Caucus named the ITRC as the winner of the 2010 Suzanne McDaniel Public Awareness Award, after being nominated by Representatives Brian Bilbray and Susan Davis of California.

 

 

 


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