If someone has stolen your identity, you might be wondering if you can sue them.
The short answer is yes––you can sue someone for identity theft. But unfortunately, it's a complicated process, and there’s no guarantee that you’ll come out of it with any financial compensation.
Identity theft feels like a violation. If you’re the victim of identity theft, it’s understandable that you’d want to get some sort of compensation from the criminal. So how should you proceed?
In this guide, we’ll cover the steps you need to take to sue for identity theft, what you can expect to happen, and what kind of compensation you might receive.
When can you sue someone for stealing your identity?
Identity theft happens when a criminal gets access to your personally identifying information (PII), such as account numbers, Social Security number, and driver’s license, and uses it to commit fraudulent activity.
An identity thief could open up credit cards in your name, commit loan fraud, steal your tax return, and even steal your medical benefits.
Identity theft is a crime, and every state has its own laws covering your rights as a victim. There are also federal laws covering identity theft in the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act.
Some states have specific identity theft laws, but in many cases, you’ll need your situation to fall under a specific category.
Here are some of the legal situations that will allow you to sue for identity theft:
· Fraud. There are too many types of fraud to list here. But the most common type of identity theft is financial fraud. Keep in mind that children are often the victims of identity fraud and credit theft, so protecting your children from identity theft should be just as important to you as protecting yourself. If someone has used your information (or your child’s information) to steal money or credit, or inflict financial harm, you should be able to sue.
· Negligence. If someone acts in a careless way that causes you harm, such as leaving your data easily exposed to criminals, you might be able to sue.
· Breach of fiduciary duty. If a professional has a special responsibility to act in your best interest and fails to do so, you might be able to sue them. In general terms, this can apply to employers, employees, attorneys, and clients.
· Invasion of privacy. If someone intrudes on your personal life or personal information, you may be able to sue them for invasion of privacy. An example of this is when celebrities get hacked for sensitive photos and information.
· Intentional infliction of emotional distress. While less common, you may be able to sue for severe trauma and distress. Identity theft can feel like a violation, and often causes emotional harm to the victim.
· Conversion. Conversion is when someone intentionally takes control over your property, like when you’ve been the victim of loan or bank fraud.
· Duty of care. Companies with access to your sensitive information have a legal obligation to protect it. Duty of care is often the first thing you’ll need to prove before any of the other situations above.
Proving your legal situation can be nuanced and more complicated than you think.
To get a better idea of what federal or state laws you can sue under, speak with a licensed attorney who can help advise you on the specifics of your identity theft case.
Who can you sue for identify theft?
When you’ve been the victim of identity theft, the question isn’t often how you’re going to sue, but who you’re going after.
Identity theft is a crime. You can sue the person or parties responsible. But who is that?
Was your identity stolen by someone you know, such as a friend or family member? Was a criminal convicted and charged with stealing your identity? Was your personal data compromised in a data breach that led to identity theft?
All of these are situations that you can sue for identity theft. Let’s look a little closer at each one.
Can you sue an individual for stealing your identity?
You can sue an individual for stealing your identity, or for the unauthorized use of your Social Security number (SSN).
But before you can take them to court, they need to be caught and convicted of the crime. Here’s where suing for identity theft can get tricky.
First, identity thieves are notoriously hard to catch. Scammers and thieves use advanced frauds like phishing, smishing, and social engineering attacks to steal your information and hide their own identities.
Identity thieves can also buy your sensitive information on the dark web, so you’ll have no idea who they are. If you want to see if your information is available to hackers, there are a number of dark web scanners you can use to scan the dark web for your identity or bank information.
Next, identity theft often derives from someone you know, such as a friend or family member. To sue them, you’ll need to file a police report and press charges against them. Not everyone feels comfortable taking a family member to court.
Finally, the criminals who commit identity theft might be broke. If they don’t have any assets, or already spent everything they stole from you, you’re out of luck.
Can you sue a company for allowing identity theft?
You can also sue a company if hackers stole your information during a data breach that allowed your identity to be stolen. However, these are often class action lawsuits.
The types of companies you can potentially sue for identity theft include:
· Credit card issuers
· Banks
· Employers (if they were responsible for a data breach)
· Merchants who process credit transactions
· Credit bureaus
Companies have a duty to protect your information and assets.
Unfortunately, suing a company for a possible data breach can be difficult to prove. With the number of data breaches that have happened in recent years, it’s also hard to determine which company is responsible.
Here’s an example: Like most people, let’s say you have multiple credit cards. While on vacation, you use different ones for your hotel, shopping, and dining. But then a few months after getting home, you discover your identity has been stolen. Who’s responsible? One of the credit card companies? The hotel? A store where you used your credit card?
Even if a company admits to a data breach, it’s often months or even years after the fact, which makes it difficult to prove they were responsible for your loss.
What about class action lawsuits or consumer identity theft cases?
As an individual claimant, you might have a hard time proving which company was responsible for your loss. But another option is to join a class action lawsuit. This is when a group of victims come together to collectively sue a company for a data breach.
ClassAction.org lists open lawsuits and investigations that you can check and join.
How much can you sue for identity theft?
If you think you’ve got a valid identity theft case––and the criminal has been discovered, caught, and charged with the crime––the next question you probably have is: How much can I sue for?
The “damages” you can sue for from identity theft fall under three different categories:
Compensatory damages
Compensatory damages cover anything you’ve lost due to identity theft. A simple way to think about these damages is that recovering them is designed to make you “whole.”
Examples of this include if you’ve had money stolen from your bank accounts or were stuck paying interest and payments on loans you didn’t take out. Compensatory damages from identity theft can also cover anxiety or distress that the ordeal caused you.
Going to court to recover losses from identity theft can take time and money. You’ll need to decide if the juice is worth the squeeze in pursuing the damages.
Punitive damages
Punitive damages are designed to punish the person responsible for the crime. They go beyond the compensatory damages that made you “whole.”
Not every state offers punitive damages for identity theft, especially against banks or businesses that allowed or facilitated the theft. If an individual has been caught and charged with theft, you may be able to collect from them, if they have money to pay you.
Injunctive relief
Injunctive relief can be critical during identity theft cases. In simple terms, this is when a court orders that you’re not responsible for debts created in your (or your business’) name. This can help protect your credit score.
To get a better idea of what you might recover, you'll need to speak with an experienced identity theft attorney. This person will guide you through the legal process and give you a better understanding of your rights.
How to sue for identity theft in 5 steps
To prepare for an identity theft lawsuit, you need to show proof that it happened, that you were harmed, and that you took steps to report it and minimize the damage as soon as you found out.
Step 1: Take steps to protect your identity and minimize damages
In order to sue for identity theft or claim identity theft protection, you need to show that you took steps to minimize the damage.
As soon as you realize you’ve been a victim, you need to contact the fraud department at all affected businesses and agencies, change your passwords, and shut down credit cards and open new accounts.
Make sure to notify every financial institution where you have accounts. You’ll also want to notify the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion), so that your credit isn’t impacted. You should also consider a credit freeze to prevent further damage.
Step 2: Report your identity theft to the FTC and the police
Next, you need to report identity fraud to the proper authorities so they can investigate. Filing reports with both the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and your local police department must be done before you can sue anyone for identity theft.
Head to IdentityTheft.gov to file a report with the FTC. They’ll ask you a few questions about what happened to help you create an Identity Theft Affidavit (your formal report to the FTC) and recovery plan.
Next, you’ll want to file a police report for identity theft. Most law enforcement agencies will ask for a copy of your FTC report first. Bring that report, your government-issued ID, and any other proof of identity theft.
Step 3: Gather any supporting documentation
You need to prove that you were damaged by the theft. Some proof can be easy to obtain, such as bank accounts and credit cards taken out in your name. But others can be more difficult.
If you interacted with the thief, print out any correspondences that occurred via email or text. Otherwise, collect key items such as bank statements, your credit report, IRS notices, collection letters, and data breach notifications. Make sure they’re all dated as well.
Step 4: Hire an attorney to help you sue
Suing for identity theft can be complicated and stressful. In almost every case, you should contact a local identity theft attorney to help guide you through the process. They’ll look at your case and decide who you can sue, under what laws, and how much to sue for.
Step 5: Set up fraud alerts and identity theft protection
Once your information has been stolen by scammers, identity theft can happen over and over. And suing a person or business won’t protect you from future frauds.
Consider a fraud monitoring and identity theft protection service to keep you safe.
There are many services out there that will monitor your critical information and alert you of suspicious activity, such as bank accounts, Social Security numbers, and Wi-Fi networks.
Is it worth it to sue someone for identity theft?
In all cases of identity theft, you should report it to the proper authorities.
But should you go through the trouble of hiring an attorney, filing charges against the person responsible for the crime, and dragging them to court?
The answer depends on you and the damage inflicted.
Did a scammer steal your password and lock you out of your online accounts, or did they swipe your credit card number, open fraudulent accounts, and run up massive debt in your name?
If you decide to sue, contact a law firm in your area. An experienced attorney can help you understand all your rights and give you the legal advice you need to guide you through the process.
The bottom line: Identity theft protection is the better option
Recovering damages from individual identity theft can be incredibly hard to win, especially if the thief has nothing to offer.
It’s better to protect your identity today than to deal with the fallout of identity theft in the future.
The best form of protection is prevention.
