Identity theft is increasing at a dramatic rate in the United States, the United Kingdom, and other mature markets and financial institutions must take the initiative to stem the tide of this growing threat, says a new report from Meridien Research.
According to Dennis Behrman, analyst at Meridien Research and co-author of the report, institutions have continued to grant identity thieves access to financial facilities even after victims have notified authorities and placed fraud alerts on their financial records.
"Without adequate attention and due diligence, identity theft will continue to spiral upwards to become so costly that the only valid mitigation of the risk will involve withholding customer-demanded services over certain channels," warns Behrman.
The Meridien report, "ID Verification Solutions: a Floodlight on the Den of Identity Thieves," predicts the lion's share of spending on identity verification solutions over the next five years will be directed toward transaction fees from service providers. Consumer data is the critical ingredient to identity verification, and that ingredient is sold by volume. The research firm expects skewed spending geographically, with the industrialised economies spending more heavily.