3.2 Issues in Other Jurisdictions

Identity theft is an issue that requires global cooperation to ensure a safe internet, it is becoming more serious due to its profitability and low rate of conviction. Global citizens are facing the threat of identity theft and it has become a crime which involves more than billion dollars annually, and affecting millions of people, businesses, and countries around the world. The identity theft has brought a lot of new issues for the global community as it can be perpetrated globally over the internet easily. This crime can occur in many forms, like some thieves may buy a house, obtain a credit card, get a job or subscribe to certain services by using personal information of other people and commit other crimes as well.

Many victims spend a lot of money and time to repair damage to their good name and financial matters. There are many challenges in combating the identity theft, these cases are difficult to be solved because of the anonymity and the nature of the internet crime. They are hardly bound to a geographic area, they can commit crime from a different area distant from victims. Different jurisdictions and regulations make the enforcement and prosecution become more difficult. It requires the involvement of several law enforcement bodies to solve such cases. There is a lack of legislation among these countries to counter identity theft, it can affect victims attempts to recover their loss and reputation.

Some developing countries do not have sufficient manpower and resources to combat identity theft. The lack of cooperation between developed and developing countries could create legal loopholes which identity thieves can make use of it and the lack of solid cyber security measures has caused inefficiency to counter this issue. People all over the world have to take more secured measures to protect themselves from identity theft. Awareness is a great weapon to fight against identity theft, it must be enhanced globally so that people are aware of the crime and able to prevent it.They must be educated to safeguard their data as these thieves might commit theft transnasionally and given adequate legal assistance to get their compensation.

A treaty on identity theft can be established to enhance the uniformity among different countries and make policies so that those companies around the world adhere to the regulations to prevent international syndicates from committing fraud and not able to escape from prosecution and conviction. Resources sharing and common criminal procedures can facilitate the efforts in penalising identity thieves. Each country must put more efforts to strenghten the cyber security and work together in making access to personal information and internet transcations safer and protected from the risk of being hijacked.

Even though law enforcement situations are geographically different, every country is having same challenges and obstacles when facing the anonymous and borderless nature of identity theft. The challenge remains as these thieves continue to develop new method of getting and misusing the personal information. Therefore, every country must have closer cooperation and coordination in establishing strong mechanisms and taking effective measures in order to counter identity theft successfully.