The identity theft crisis has increased significantly due to the use of their credit cards on the Internet. Hackers exploit large companies and access the credit card information of millions of people (Bray and Yadron 2). A person's identity is never safe and can be stolen more easily than one might think. As rates of identity theft increase, it becomes more dangerous. The government, along with many large companies, is working on ways to prevent identity theft. Before most internet shopping, identity theft was never such a serious problem. Now that the Internet market has become so big, it has also become a major target for identity thieves. Most believe that identity theft will not happen to them, when in reality it is an extremely dangerous thing, increasing at a high rate, and can happen to anyone at any time. In today's society, identity theft is more common than ever. In 2011, identity theft increased by thirteen percent. This affected 11.6 million adults. SSIDs and credit card accounts have all been stolen via social media (Veen 20+). This proves how dangerous the Internet is for credit cards. Identity theft is becoming more and more common. Brigitte Acoca states, “Identity theft is the fastest growing crime of the 21st century” (Stein 68). When crime grows this quickly, it makes crime a bigger market for criminals. The more criminals commit the crime, the greater the likelihood that the identity will be stolen. Identity theft doesn't just happen over the Internet. This can also happen through third-party operators. People often receive various phone calls from third-party carriers asking for their credit card number or SSID. If the “victim” is... middle of paper...... weight: protect your finances, your health and your freedom. " Free Credit Scores | 3 Credit Bureaus | FreeScoresAndMore.com. Np, nd Web. April 14, 2014. “Prevent and Report Identity Theft | USA.gov.” USA.gov: Official web portal of the US government. Np, nd Web. April 15, 2014. “Immediate Steps to Repair Consumer Information in the Event of Identity Theft.” Np, August 2012. Web. April 15, 2014. Ledford, Jerry. “Steps to Recover Your Identity After Identity Theft.” » Complaints. Np, and Web. April 16, 2014. “Identity Theft.” Study mode. Np, and Web. April 17, 2014. “Financial identity theft is the most common form of identity theft. » Financial identity theft is the most common form of identity theft. Np, and Web. April 17, 2014. “Criminal Identity Theft: What to Do If It Happens to You.” » Criminal identity theft: what to do if it happens to you. Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, May 2013. Web. April 17. 2014.