Steve Gibbons (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Home Affairs. Will the minister inform the House about the government’s latest reforms to protect against identity crime?

Bob Debus (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question. The issue of identity crime is one of increasing and international significance. Identity crime can involve the illegal use of a person’s credit card details to make purchases over the internet or the telephone, and the assumption of another person’s entire identity to open a bank account and take out loans and to conduct other business illegally in that name. The true extent of identity crime is unknown, but several years ago we know that it was costing more than $1 billion to citizens in this country, and no doubt that figure is growing. In the United States last year eight million people were victims of identity fraud at a cost of $49 billion. In the United Kingdom the impersonation of deceased persons is the fastest growing identity crime and it is estimated to cost ₤250 million a year.

The notion of identity is central to our lives. It affects our reputation and livelihood and our relationships and it is why, when identity crime occurs, people feel violated and vulnerable. Corporations can be victims, but when individuals are victims, their identity stolen and misused, that can have a major psychological and financial impact. Victims often are not even aware that identity crime has occurred until they are called by creditors about a defaulted loan payment. I am advised that an individual victim will on average take two or more years to restore their credit rating when an event like this has occurred. One widespread method of obtaining personal details is known as ‘phishing’. That is when fake emails are sent pretending to be from trusted organisations directing a person to a fake website which is designed to look like the real website—say, of a bank. The person is asked to verify their login details, which are then captured and used to withdraw funds fraudulently. Identities are also stolen by key-logging devices on computers and the infiltration of organisations that store large amounts of personal information.

Social interaction on the internet also makes people vulnerable to identity theft. If you place personal information on a site like Facebook, then you can provide enough information for perpetrators to steal an identity and open accounts for an individual.

Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Small Business, Independent Contractors, Tourism and the Arts) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You ever been to Facebook, Bob?

Bob Debus (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

For the election, I did, yes. It is not only individuals that commit these crimes. Organised groups are becoming increasingly involved. The 9-11 hijackers used fake social security numbers and false identities for their pilot training, and other terrorist networks have done the same to get employment overseas to finance their activities and ultimately to avoid detection.

The problem, then, is evidently widespread in the world and our laws need to be updated to reflect emerging problems, much like laws governing internet crime have been adapted. This week, therefore, model laws will be introduced which will include new offences for misusing identification to commit an offence or having equipment capable of creating false information. Those charges will help police in all jurisdictions to more effectively investigate and prosecute offences, because a specific offence will exist. All jurisdictions will be empowered to issue certificates to victims of identity crime to help them re-establish their credit histories. Victims will be able to get a court order to reclaim their identity after a prosecution for identity crime or even after they become aware that their identity has been stolen. That will help victims to recover their identities and again use facilities in banks and other financial institutions which had been denied to them by the crime committed against them.