The UK Cabinet Office (2002) distinguishes three elements of identity that can be used to identify an individual:

• Biometric
• Attributed
• Biographical

Biometric Identity

Your biometric identity is made up of your unique physical attributes like fingerprints, voiceprint, retina, facial structure, gait, signature and DNA but the facilities to use technology to check your biometric data are not in general use at the current time.  Other biometric data like hair colour, eye colour and even height are not very reliable.  Hair and eye colour can be changed; height varies during the day due to spinal compression.

Attributed Identity

This is the identity you acquired at birth:

• Full Name
• Date of Birth
• Place of Birth
• Parent’s Names

This type of identity theft is usually perpetrated using the birth records of children who died in infancy.  This is sometimes referred to as “Day of the Jackal” identity theft described in Frederick Forsyth’s novel. There is nothing to stop an identity thief from getting hold of YOUR birth certificate. These are readily available from the General Register Office for a small fee. Armed with your birth certificate a criminal can apply for further forms of identification.  Unfortunately many banks use your mother's maiden name as their security question.  If a thief can get hold of your birith certificate, he has your mother's maiden name!

Biographical Identity

Your biographical identity is made up over time and is indeed the most prevalent form of identity theft.  Biographical identity is made up of your life events and how you engage with structured society:

• Registration of birth
• Details of education and qualifications
• Entries on the Electoral Register
• Tax history
• Benefits history
• Employment history
• Registration of Marriage
• Mortgage Account information/Property Ownership
• Insurance Policies
• History of interaction with organisations such as Banks, Creditors, Utilities and Public Authorities

Biographical identity theft is usually done by getting genuine government documents on the basis of supplying false information and may involve the application for a genuine driving licence using documents stolen from you.

Once an Identity Thief gets hold of your information there are many ways he can carry out fraudulent activities.  With just one piece of your identity he can obtain further identity documents which will open the door to:

• Apply for a mobile phone contract in your name
• Apply for a credit card in your name
• Open a Bank or Building Society account in your name
• Apply for other financial services in your name
• Apply for benefits in your name – housing, tax credits, income supports, job seekers allowance, child benefit etc
• Apply for a driving licence in your name
• Register a vehicle in your name
• Apply for a passport in your name

It may seem incredible but from such small beginnings a thief can build up huge credit card debts, loans, a car brought with hire purchase, even mortgages in your name.  This can seriously damage your credit rating and can take months or years to sort out.

The DVLA will accept UK/EU/EEA passports and EU/EEA national identity cards as means of identification for the purposes of obtaining a driving licence.  Birth Certificates and Adoption Certificates can also be used but they must be accompanied by a photograph endorsed by a non-relative UK resident who has known the applicant for more than two years.  The DVLA may only check a proportion of these applications so there’s a good chance of the thief succeeding.