video: RI Ranked 2nd Most Vulnerable State in U.S. to Identity Theft & Fraud
Thursday, October 19, 2017
Capt. Alfred of the RISP on GoLocal LIVE's Business Monday (above)
The state of Rhode Island is ranked as one of the most vulnerable states to identity theft and fraud in the country. GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST
Rhode Island is the worst state in the country when it comes to policy regarding identity theft and fraud and is the second most vulnerable state overall when it comes to identity theft and fraud, according to a recent study completed by WalletHub. The study says RI needs to do more to adopt stronger laws.
“We started a program called the Cyber Disruption team and basically that was us reaching out to the private sectors saying ‘hey, you own 65% to 75% of the critical infrastructure out there, the networks, we need to talk to you, we need to work together because we can’t do this alone. When we did that, initially we had people, we had a few groups saying that they were interested mostly at the collegiate level, local government, National Guard, then we started to get smaller businesses trickle in. Basically what we have created now is a group that meets bi-monthly and we discuss the latest threats that are out there,” said Rhode Island State Police Captain John Alfred on GoLocal LIVE.
RI’s Rankings
- 3rd Most Vulnerable - Identity Theft
- 18th Most Vulnerable - Fraud
- 1st Most Vulnerable - Policy
- Tied1st - Highest Averaged Loss Amount Due to Online Identity Theft
The Rankings
The top five most vulnerable states in the U.S. are California, Rhode Island, District of Columbia, Florida, and Georgia.
The least vulnerable state to identity theft and fraud is Iowa.
See the Full Rankings in the Map Below
The Method
In order to determine where American consumers are most vulnerable to identity theft and fraud, WalletHub’s analysts compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across three key dimensions: 1) Identity Theft, 2) Fraud and 3) Policy.
They evaluated those dimensions using eight key metrics. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most vulnerable.
Lastly, they determined each state and the District’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its total score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.
Identity Theft – Total Points: 47.5
- Identity-Theft Complaints per Capita: Full Weight (~23.75 Points)
- Average Loss Amount Due to Online Identity Theft: Full Weight (~23.75 Points)
Fraud – Total Points: 47.5
- Fraud & Other Complaints per Capita: Full Weight (~15.83 Points)
- Average Loss Amount Due to Fraud: Full Weight (~15.83 Points)
- Persons Arrested for Fraud per Capita: Full Weight (~15.83 Points)
Policy – Total Points: 5.0
- Availability of Security-Freeze Law for Minors’ Credit Report s: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- Availability of Identity-Theft Passport Program: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- Compliance with REAL ID Act: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
Related Slideshow: Providence Crime By the Numbers - 2016
Related Articles
- 5 Safety Tips to Help Deal With Equifax Cyberattack
- Sen. Warren Expands Investigation Into Equifax Breach
- RI Ranked 21st in US for Racial Progress
- RI Ranked Among Worst States in US for Elder Abuse Protection
- RI Ranked 4th Most Affected State by Repeal of Obamacare
- RI Ranked as One of Least Obese States in U.S.
- RI Ranked 5th Most Energy Efficient State in U.S.
- RI Ranked 8th Worst State For Teachers
- RI Ranked as 10th Most Lenient State on High Risk Drivers
