ST. PAUL – State Representative Duane Quam (R- Byron) said he will push for hearings on House File 62, a piece of legislation he introduced during the 2017 session, that will create an identity theft passport that will both help victims of identity theft protect and reclaim their financial security, while also helping law enforcement authorities track down and arrest the perpetrators.
“Data breaches like we have seen recently with Equifax put the identity and financial health of millions of Minnesotans at risk,” said Quam. “Identity theft today is a high-tech crime that many of our local law enforcement and the affected consumers simply do not have the tools with which to handle. The identity theft passport can be a tool to quickly and efficiently help victims reclaim their financial stability.”
With this proposal, any Minnesotan who has been a victim of identity theft and filed a report with law enforcement may apply for an identity theft passport through the law enforcement agency. The local law enforcement agency would send a copy of the policy report and the application to the DPS Commissioner who would issue the passport to the identity theft victim.
The identity theft passport would be used by the victim to prove their identity to other local law enforcement and to help the victims reclaim their financial health in a quicker manner by being able to prove their identity.
“Identity theft crimes have become more and more prevalent in our society and these recent data breaches are only serving to make millions of people more vulnerable to this crime," said Quam. “It's far past time for the law to catch up to the realities of modern cyber-crimes. The identity theft passport will hopefully start the conversation and be a possible solution to combat the scourge of identity theft crimes."
Rep. Quam hopes to have a hearing on this bill early in the 2018 session. Senator David Senjem (R- Rochester) is author of the companion bill SF 577 in the Senate.
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$107 Billion loss over last six years is from this study done by Javelin Strategy & Research. Information can be viewed here: https://www.javelinstrategy.com/press-release/identity-fraud-hits-record-high-154-million-us-victims-2016-16-percent-according-new