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Property crime

Supplemental Fraud Survey (SFS)

The National Crime Victimization Survey’s (NCVS) Supplemental Fraud Survey (SFS) collects data on the experiences of adults across seven types of personal financial fraud during the preceding 12 months. It also collects information on victim characteristics, and whether the incident was reported to police or others.

Identity Theft Supplement (ITS)

Administered to persons age 16 or older who completed an in-person National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) interview, the Identity Theft Supplement (ITS) asks respondents if they had experienced identity theft during the past 12 months. The ITS encompasses several types of identity theft, such as the misuse of an existing account, misuse of personal information to open a new account, and other misuses of personal...

Financial fraud

In the National Crime Victimization Survey's Supplemental Fraud Survey, financial fraud is defined as acts that “intentionally and knowingly deceive the victim by misrepresenting, concealing, or omitting facts about promised goods, services, or other benefits and consequences that are nonexistent, unnecessary, never intended to be provided, or deliberately distorted for the purpose of monetary gain.” (See Stanford Center on Longevity. (2015). Framework for a taxonomy of fraud. https://longevity.stanford.edu/framework-for-a-taxonomy-of-fraud/)

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National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
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Financial fraud
National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) Financial fraud

Identity Theft and Financial Fraud

Self-report survey responses, collected through the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), are the BJS primary source of information on identity theft and financial fraud.

Identity Theft

The definition of identity theft in the NCVS includes three general types of incidents:

  • unauthorized use or attempted use of an existing account
  • unauthorized use or attempted use of personal information to open a new account
  • misuse of personal information...