Identity theft occurs when another person’s identity is used by another person without permission to gain a benefit. Most common forms of identity theft occur when the victim’s identity is used to obtain credit or other economic benefits. For example, identity theft is used to obtain credit cards, loans, cell phones, apartments, rental equipment, false information to law enforcement (trying to get out of a ticket) and just about anything imaginable.
When identity theft occurs the suspect must have obtained the victims personal information. These can be done in numerous ways. For example, personal information may be obtained by theft of mail, theft of a vehicle that contains personal information, theft of a purse or wallet, going through a person’s trash, social websites, hand held credit card readers, E-mails, job offers, data breach from a Government office, a financial institution, public records, medical provider, or other organizations that maintains a data base with individuals’ personal information. Computer hackers are able to use software that hacks into a person’s personal computer to access personal information.
Colorado Revised Statute § 18-5-902. Identity Theft
(1) A person commits identity theft if he or she:
(a) Knowingly uses the personal identifying information, financial identifying information, or financial device of another without permission or lawful authority with the intent to obtain cash, credit, property, services, or any other thing of value or to make a financial payment;
(b) Knowingly possesses the personal identifying information, financial identifying information, or financial device of another without permission or lawful authority, with the intent to use or to aid or permit some other person to use such information or device to obtain cash, credit, property, services, or any other thing of value or to make a financial payment;
(c) With the intent to defraud, falsely makes, completes, alters, or utters a written instrument or financial device containing any personal identifying information or financial identifying information of another;
(d) Knowingly possesses the personal identifying information or financial identifying information of another without permission or lawful authority to use in applying for or completing an application for a financial device or other extension of credit;
(e) Knowingly uses or possesses the personal identifying information of another without permission or lawful authority with the intent to obtain a government-issued document; or
(f) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2009, (SB 09-093), ch. 326, p. 1737, § 1, effective July 1, 2009.)
(2) Identity theft is a class 4 felony.
(3) The court shall be required to sentence the defendant to the department of corrections for a term of at least the minimum of the presumptive range and may sentence the defendant to a maximum of twice the presumptive range if:
(a) The defendant is convicted of identity theft or of attempt, conspiracy, or solicitation to commit identity theft; and
(b) The defendant has a prior conviction for a violation of this part 9 or a prior conviction for an offense committed in any other state, the United States, or any other territory subject to the jurisdiction of the United States that would constitute a violation of this part 9 if committed in this state, or for attempt, conspiracy, or solicitation to commit a violation of this part 9 or for attempt, conspiracy, or solicitation to commit an offense in another jurisdiction that would constitute a violation of this part 9 if committed in this state.
