To plan for a bright financial future, you have to understand credit scores and identity theft prevention. Lenders use your credit score to decide if you’re creditworthy, so it’s important to know where you stand compared to other consumers and be proactive.
You can also be proactive by protecting yourself from identity theft. If your personal information is stolen, it could affect not only your credit score, but also cause you to lose money, time, and your patience.
These statistics will help you stay vigilant about your personal finances, assess how your credit score compares to the rest of the country, and learn how to curb the risk of identity theft. If you have questions or need help monitoring your credit to avoid identity theft, call us at .
Credit score statistics: Scores by State
Every year, Experian researches credit scores in the U.S. Take a look back at how credit changed (mostly for the better) in 2021.
2021 general credit score fast facts[1]
- The average FICO Score in the U.S. rose to 714 in 2021. This is the fourth consecutive year of an increase, up from the average FICO Score of 710 in September 2020.
- In 2021, scores increased in all age groups. For the first time, the average FICO Score of Generation X in 2021 was in the 700s (698 to 705).
- The silent generation, with the best average credit score, increased two points (758 to 760).
- The average score of millennials increased seven points from 2020 to 2021 (679 to 686). The youngest consumers in Generation Z increased scores by five points (674 to 679), and the average score of baby boomers increased four points (736 to 740).
- In 2021, the average credit card utilization ratio was 25.3%, virtually unchanged from 2020’s rate of 25.2%.
- Nationwide, 1.67% of all credit card accounts are in some stage of delinquency, down from 1.82% in 2020.
Identity theft statistics in the United States
The latest and most comprehensive stats on identity theft are from 2021. The Federal Trade Commission reported the total number of Identity Theft reports for 2021 was 1,434,676, while total reported frauds stood at 2,789,161. Here are some other interesting highlights:
2021 identity theft by state:[2]
- State with the most identity theft cases: Rhode Island – 2,857 victims per 100k population[2]
- State with the least identity theft cases: South Dakota – 76 victims per 100k population[2]
2021 identity theft by gender:[3]
Victims are primarily married women spread evenly across all adult age groups:
- Men: 37%
- Women: 63%
However, research from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) showed that men and women were equally likely to be identity theft victims at 9% each.
2021 identity theft by age:[2]
- Age 19 & Under: 22,833 reports (2%)
- Age 20-29: 191,334 reports (16.4%)
- Age 30-39: 308,910 reports (26.4%)
- Age 40-49: 266,269 reports (22.8%)
- Age 50-59: 206,514 reports (17.7%)
- Age 60-69: 118,093 reports (10.1%)
- Age 70-79: 45,068 reports (3.9%)
- Age 80+: 9,917 reports (0.8%)
2021 identity theft race/ethnicity:[3]
According to the ITRC, in terms of race and origin, victims skew higher than the US population among White non-Hispanic, African-American, and Native American populations, but slightly lower among Asian Americans / Pacific Islanders and significantly lower among victims of Hispanic origin.
- Caucasian/White: 65%
- African American/Black: 17%
- Asian American/Pacific Islander: 7%
- Hispanic: 7%
- Native American: 4%
2021 identity theft by income:[3]
The number of victims who self-report low annual income nearly matches the number of victims who report high annual earnings.
- Less than $20,000: 17%
- $20,000 – $29,999: 14%
- $30,000 – $49,999: 13%
- $50,000 – $75,000: 12%
- More than $75,000: 21%
- No response: 23%
Most Common Types of Identity Theft:[2]
According to the Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book of 2021, Government Documents or Benefits Fraud tops the list of identity theft types reported in 2021. The FTC received 395,948 reports from people who said their information was misused to apply for a government document or benefit, such as unemployment insurance.
The Top 3 Types of Identity theft reports of 2020 & 2021 (from least to greatest) are as follows:
Fraud Type: | 2020 Reports: | 2021 Reports: | Percent Change: |
|---|---|---|---|
Loan or Lease | 205,072 | 197,914 | -3.49% |
Credit Card | 393,378 | 389,737 | -0.92% |
Gov Docs or Benefits | 407,512 | 395,948 | -2.83% |
Financial impact of theft
According to the FTC, consumers reported losing more than $5.8 billion to fraud in 2021, an increase of more than 70 percent over the previous year.[2]
- Of those losses reported by consumers, more than $2.3 billion of losses reported last year were due to imposter scams—up from $1.2 billion in 2020, while online shopping accounted for about $392 million in reported losses from consumers—up from $246 million in 2020.[4]
Younger people reported losing money to fraud 23% more often than older people.[2]
- Ages 20-29: 41%
- Ages 70-79: 18%
However, when people aged 70+ did have a fraud related financial loss, the median loss was much higher.[2]
- Ages 20-29: $500
- Ages 70-79: $800
- Age 80+: $1,500
Moreover, from January 1, 2020 to May 20, 2021, the median loss from COVID-related identity thefts was $350, according to FTC data.[2]
The ITRC Consumer Aftermath Report claimed that most victims lose less than $500, but 21% say they lost more than $20,000 to identity criminals.[3]
Finance & beyond[3]
Most identity crime victims require at least one month, while some need one year or more to resolve their identity issues.
- Only 1% of victims who contacted the ITRC can resolve their issues in a single day
- 37% of pre-pandemic identity crime victims said their issues from 2019 were not resolved as of May 2020
- 75% of victims of pandemic-related identity fraud in 2020 said their issues were still unresolved as of April 2021
There is a sizable number of repeat victims; Three out of ten (29%) of victims have been repeat victims of an identity theft crime.
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- As a result of Covid-19 related identity theft (financial impact):
- 40% reported being unable to pay their routine monthly bills
- 33% reported not having funds to buy food or pay utilities
- 14% reported being evicted for failing to pay rent or mortgage
- 14% reported not being able to make their car payment
- 8% reported not being able to afford child or elder care
- As a result of Covid-19 related identity theft (financial impact):
-
- As a result of Covid-19 related identity theft (non-financial impact):
- 54% reported feeling more stressed than usual
- 54% reported feeling violated
- 43% reported feeling powerless or helpless
- 37% reported feeling they trust people less
- 19% reported arguing more often with family & friends
- As a result of Covid-19 related identity theft (non-financial impact):
Source:
[2] https://www.ftc.gov/reports/consumer-sentinel-network-data-book-2021
[3] https://www.idtheftcenter.org/publication/identity-theft-the-aftermath-study/
[4]https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/02/new-data-shows-ftc-received-28-million-fraud-reports-consumers-2021-0
Article last modified on November 8, 2022. Published by Debt.com, LLC
