CompareCards Survey Finds Just 1 in 3 Cardholders Expect to be a Victim of Identity Theft; Young Millennials Most Likely to Experience Card Fraud

CHARLOTTE, N.C., March 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Just one in three credit cardholders think their identity will be stolen in the future, according to a new report from CompareCards.com. That's despite the fact that 21 percent of cardholders – including 32 percent of young millennials – said their credit or debit card had been used fraudulently in the past year.

That optimism was perhaps the most surprising takeaway from the CompareCards report on credit cardholders' views around identity theft. About one in five cardholders said they had a credit or debit card used fraudulently in the past year, a year in which data breaches, skimming and credit card fraud were constantly in the headlines. However, despite all that, CompareCards found that Americans are surprisingly upbeat about what the future held for them when it comes to identity theft.

Key findings:

• Just 30 percent of credit cardholders think their identity will be stolen in the future, even though 21 percent of cardholders said they had a credit or debit card used fraudulently in the past year alone.
• The younger you are, the more likely you are to say you had a card used fraudulently. Thirty-two percent of young millennials – those between 22 and 29 years old — said they were victims vs. just 16 percent of baby boomers.
• Those with household incomes over $100k were most likely to say that a card had been used fraudulently (29 percent vs. less than 20 percent of those under $50k).
• Midwesterners are the least likely to believe their identity would be stolen, while Westerners are the most likely to believe so. Also among the most likely to believe they'd be victims of ID theft: men, Gen Xers and those making $100k+.
• Half of those who had a card used fraudulently placed a fraud alert afterwards.

"It's great that people are optimistic, as long as they don't use it as an excuse to become complacent or let their guard down," said Matt Schulz, Chief Industry Analyst from CompareCards. "The truth is that identity theft is a forever problem. Social Security numbers, passwords and other private information for millions of Americans have already been compromised, and once it is out there, it's out there for good. That's why it is incredibly important for Americans to build identity theft protection into their regular financial routine."

Schulz continued, "If you don't check your credit report regularly, you're not being diligent enough about ID theft. Keeping an eye on your credit report is the best way to see if someone has stolen your identity to open new card accounts in your name. You should also review your online bank account and credit card account statements every week. Simply review your latest transactions and make sure everything looks legitimate. If something doesn't seem right, report it to your bank or credit card issuer right away."

To view the full report, visit https://www.comparecards.com/blog/1-in-3-cardholders-expect-to-be-identity-theft-victim/.

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About CompareCards:
CompareCards' mission is to help people make smarter, more informed, healthier financial decisions based on deeper knowledge of financial offers. Each month, over 2.9 million visitors come to CompareCards' website to independently compare credit cards side-by-side and choose a credit card based on interest rate, reward benefit, cost savings, and other factors that are important to each person. CompareCards provides easy-to-use, objective tools and educational resources that help people do everything from making credit card comparisons to managing their credit health. For more information, please visit www.comparecards.com.

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