Top 6 Celebrities who have had their identities stolen

Identity theft is so cunning and pervasive that even celebrities are not immune to it. Below are the top 6 celebrities who have had their identities stolen:

1) Oprah Winfrey & Martha Stewart

Oprah Winfrey and Martha Stewart’s identities were stolen by bus boy Abraham Abdallah in 2000. He has been accused of using the internet along with Forbes Magazine’s list of America’s richest people in order to commit the notorious identity theft. Notations were made by him of the Forbes celebrities’ social security numbers, home addresses and birthdates. Abdallah also possessed 400 stolen credit card numbers, and he did not target Oprah or Martha explicitly. His list also targeted Spielberg, Stewart, George Lucas, Ross Perot and Warren Buffett. Once he had all of their personal information, he contacted their banks and brokerage firms, and expensive items were then purchased. Prostitutes and Couriers all over New York City were used to deliver the items. Abdallah was quickly found out and sentenced to jail.

2) Steven Spielberg

Besides being involved in the same identity theft case as Oprah, Spielberg was also involved in another case, although no money was stolen. A jailed fan of Spielberg, James Jackson, obtained his social security number, credit card statements, and other personal information by calling the Screen Actors Guild and tricking an operator into revealing the guild’s health care insurance provider. Jackson then called the health care insurance company and pretended to be a health provider administrator looking to verify coverage for billing purposes. The operators then revealed Spielberg’s social security number, date of birth, addresses and other information. It was over a year before James Jackson was discovered.

3) Paris Hilton

Paris Hilton discovered that her identity was stolen when she found out that someone had created an unauthorized website in her name. She ended up filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization and also pressed charges against the website creators. Paris’ identity was also stolen a second time, but for monetary gain. A Philadelphia identity theft ring targeted Paris as well as hundreds of other people, and they used celebrity personal information to manufacture counterfeit checks and also apply for fraudulent credit cards.

4) Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro sued a U.S. watch company claiming that they fraudulently used his image from the movie “Righteous Kill” as an advertisement without his consent. De Niro’s contract specifically prohibits the use of his name, voice or likeness in commercials without his written consent.

5) Will Smith

Will Smith’s identity was stolen by Carlos Lomax of Duquesne. The thief posed as the actor, and ran up credit-card debts of up to $33,000. In fact, Lomax opened 14 bogus accounts in the Pittsburg area using Will Smith’s name. This wasn’t his first time committing identity theft either – Carlos Lomax also stole the identity of Atlanta Hawks basketball player Steve Smith, and racked up $81,000 in unauthorized purchases.

6) Martha Reeves

Motown singer Martha Reeves was exposed to the risks of identity theft when one of her old contracts from the ‘70s appeared on Ebay. Her Saturday Night Live contract was being auctioned on the site, and it included her social security number, which was visible in the photographs taken of it. She complained to the Federal Trade Commission, and the link was soon taken down.

Top 6 Athletes who have had their identities stolen

Besides celebrities, popular athletes have also succumbed to identity theft. Below are the top 6 athletes who have been victims of identity theft:

1) Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods’ identity was stolen by California resident Anthony Lemar Taylor in the late ’90s. He had managed to obtain Woods’ social security number, and went to the California Department of Motor Vehicles where he was issued an authentic license using Woods’ name. Once he had a fraudulent driver’s license, Taylor was also able to obtain credit at local Sacramento stores, and ended up with 12 lines of credit in the golfer’s name, ultimately racking up thousands of dollars worth of charges. Taylor was eventually caught and arrested.

2) Barry Bonds

Popular baseball star Barry Bonds’ identity was stolen back in 2005, when Jason Keys of Indianapolis found out his social security number and applied for a credit card. He obtained Bonds’ personal information while he was shredding personal records for a company that specialized in identity theft protection. Once Keys was found out, he was not sentenced to jail, but instead, decided to agree to the terms of a plea bargain.

3) Vontae Davis

Most recently, the Miami Dolphins player Vontae Davis experienced identity theft firsthand in June 2009. An impostor used an old license stolen from Davis months earlier as identification when he was stopped by police during a traffic stop in early June. Currently, Davis’ old license has not been recovered, and the impostor is still on the loose.

4) Danny Wuerffel

Quarterbacker Danny Wuerffel found out that he had fallen victim to identity theft when he received a phone call from a Home Depot asking if he had applied for a home-improvement loan in New Jersey. The suspect had obtained Wuerffel’s social security number, date of birth and off-season residence address, and used the information to apply for a $16,000 loan.

5) Steve Smith

Carlos Lomax, the same person who scammed actor Will Smith, also stole athlete Steve Smith’s identity. Lomax took out multiple lines of credit in the star’s name, and racked up over $80,000 worth of merchandise. Once he was caught, the suspect ended up serving two years in prison, three years’ probation and was required to pay $270,000 to the credit card companies that he frauded.

6) Ty Law

Ty Law had his identity stolen by a man named Jonathan Hoskins who obtained an Ohio driver’s license in Law’s name, and who also made $20,000 in withdrawals from his bank account. Law first discovered that his money was being stolen when he checked his bank account statements, and saw that he only had $33 in his account. Soon after, he also discovered that an unauthorized $10,000 withdrawal had been made. Hoskins was tracked down, and is now behind bars.

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