These are some of the results of an online survey of 2,120 U.S. adults conducted by Harris Interactive® between May 1 and 3, 2006 for The Wall Street Journal Online's Personal Journal Edition.

Personal experience with identity theft

Sixteen percent of adults say they have had their credit or debit card used by someone they don't know without their permission. Smaller numbers say their identity was used to open a phone, utility or other type of account (3%), their personal information was used for non-financial fraud (2%), a mortgage or line of credit they didn't authorize was opened in their name (1%) or their identity was stolen and used in some other way (6%).

Preventing identity theft

In an effort to help prevent identity theft, about seven in 10 adults say they watch for suspicious activity on their accounts (73%), shred mail that contains their account numbers (72%), and/or limit access to their Social Security number (69%) to prevent identity theft. Other steps taken include checking their credit reports (41%), limiting the purchases they make online (30%), limiting their online banking transactions (24%), and signing up for a credit-monitoring service (8%). Some demographic differences exist:

Those with a college degree or higher are more likely than those with a high school education or less to watch for suspicious activity on their accounts (84% vs. 66%), limit access to their Social Security number (74% vs. 66%), and check their credit reports (54% vs. 31%).

Those with annual household incomes of $75K or more are more likely than those with household incomes of less than $35K to check their credit reports (53% vs. 34%).

Those ages 18 to 34 are less likely than their older counterparts to watch for suspicious activity (63% vs. 81% of 45- to 54-year-olds), shred mail that has their account numbers (62% vs. 78% of those aged 55 and over), and limit access to their Social Security number (60% vs. 74% of 35- to 44-year-olds and those aged 55 and over).

Those in the West are more likely than those in the Northeast to check their credit reports (47% vs. 38%).

Women are more likely than men to watch for suspicious activity on their accounts (78% vs. 68%), shred mail that has their account numbers (76% vs. 68%), limit access to their Social Security number (72% vs. 66%), and check their credit reports (43% vs. 38%).

Anne Aldrich, Senior Vice President of the Financial Services Practice at Harris Interactive comments, "Clearly identity theft is an important issue to the public today, and huge numbers are taking steps to try and avoid becoming victims. Financial institutions can build public trust by educating customers about how to keep their identity secure and by devising better ways for customers to communicate with them about their personal account activity."

When specifically asked about suspicious emails, more than eight in 10 (83%) online adults say they have received emails from a financial institution or other company they have an account with that appeared suspicious. While slightly more than half (52%) say they delete the email, more than a third say they take an investigative approach by reporting the email to or confirming it with the company in question (39%) or go to the company's website on their own to check their account (36%). Few (3%) say they do nothing when they receive a suspicious email.

Who adults trust with their personal information

Banks have been most successful in gaining public trust, as 80 percent of adults say they trust banks a fair amount or a great deal to prevent others from accessing their sensitive personal information or account number. At least half of adults say they trust credit card (64%), insurance companies (62%), and brokers a fair amount or a great deal to protect their personal information. Retailers, however, have some work to do as about half (52%) say they trust retailers very little or not at all to protect their personal information.

© 2006 HealthNewsDigest.com