Fergie's Tech Blog

ID Theives Hitting New Lows: Hospital ID Theft

Bob Sullivan writes in The Red Tape Chronicles:

It is an almost unthinkable crime, to steal from the sick and dying. And yet we all know it happens. I remember as a child hearing my parents discuss leaving a family member at home during funerals, to ward off any would-be burglars. Burglars, they said, read the obituaries, too -- and know exactly when the entire family will be busy elsewhere.

So it should not be surprising that identity criminals target the dying or the dead. Still, it’s hard to imagine until you see it for yourself. On Christmas night, you will. Dateline NBC will tell the incredible story of a man sick with a terrible form of leukemia, a man literally days from his death -- and the repulsive crime he suffered while enduring everything else that comes with cancer. Eric Drew's identity was stolen by a hospital worker. While Drew was gasping for life, his imposter was living it up on fraudulent credit cards. After all, the criminal must have thought, Drew was hardly in a position to complain.

posted by Fergie @ 12/23/2005 07:27:00 AM