Forensics Journal - Stevenson University 2010 | Page 40

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY

Book Review:

Investigating Identity Theft: A Guide for Businesses, Law Enforcement,
and Victims by Judith M. Collins
Veronica Arze
As individuals and businesses rely more on technology and technology continues to advance, new methods to commit identity theft have
surfaced. With the introduction of and the growing reliance on the
Internet for everyday tasks such as online banking, online shopping,
and loan applications, identity theft via the Internet is becoming
more popular. In her book, Investigating Identity Theft: A Guide for
Businesses, Law Enforcement, and Victims, Judith M. Collins provides
guidance for investigators and victims investigating identity thefts
with the assistance of the Internet itself.

Following these initial chapters are two chapters dedicated to educating readers on configuring their computers for Internet security
and online investigations. These two chapters are primarily written
for investigators new to the internet. Regardless, the information
provided is useful for any reader as a check to ensure proper computer security is enabled. Exercises and tutorials are included in these
chapters and serve as how-to steps for any reader not familiar with
settings on their computer. Collins dedicates part of chapter four to
an introduction to search engines and directories. Search engines are
critical to online investigations when the investigator has minimal
information on the crime, i.e. an address, phone number, or name.
Collins provides excellent examples of this in chapter seven where she
presents a case example of an identity theft investigation performed
with search engines.

Collins is a highly regarded expert on identity theft and a former
associate professor at the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan
State University. She has written what she labels a “how-to” book
for investigators, criminal justice teachers, and victims who wish to
investigate their own identity thefts. According to Collins, “Even
novice investigators can become professionals at online investigations”
(p. 14). Investigating Identity Theft provides readers with instructions
on conducting investigations and includes exercises using the techniques shared in the book. Additionally, the book contains many case
examples which assist the reader in understanding how the methods
work in real investigations.

In chapters five and six, Collins advises readers of two important
steps: The first includes preparing for the investigation. Victims must
take some steps immediately subsequent to discovering the identity
theft. Chapter six is primarily for investigators because it touches on
the second important step of any investigation, the authentication
process. According to Collins, “authenticating simply means verifying
the identity theft claims before launching full-scale into the investigation” (p. 89). All investigators should take this step in order to ensure
that they are not wasting valuable resources on a criminal rat \