Letter (email) to my state legislators:
You both are my legislators. I have an area of concern that deserves legislative attention. We could stop much of the bank and online fraud if we just would legislate against it.
I have had three frauds on my bank accounts since January. Unable to get the police to decently pursue them, I have had to look into them myself. Today, I uncovered what I believe is a piece of evidence that should be enough to convict my suspect. I should not have had to investigate these frauds myself. We have police departments for that purpose. Still, I am glad that I have been able to go through the experience as I have been able to question what needs to be done to protect people. Bank fraud is not a small matter -- or shouldn't be. I don't think there is a doubt that the police receive case after case, daily. Yet, they say they cannot do anything. We have a whole segment of society that is not receiving the protection of the law (and of the legislators who make the laws) that they deserve. Protecting the citizenry from crime is the large part of why we even have governments. But I feel like I've more or less been told: "Bank fraud? Online fraud? Wire fraud? Oh, no, we don't do those things. We do just the more important things, you know: rape, murder, domestic violence, and break-ins We don't have time for bank fraud. That's out of our range. There's simply nothing we can do about that." Forgive me if I get a little sarcastic, but while law enforcement is well-meaning, I sincerely wonder if they give much thought to how wrong it is to let criminals operate without fear of repercussion when it comes to bank fraud. I do, indeed, wonder if law enforcement realizes they are leaving a whole segment of society unprotected. I do not doubt that legislators have little understanding that this is a situation they should be addressing. I'm sure legislators run across bank fraud in their own lives, but it never occurs to them that they are the ones who can do something about it. And, if law enforcement and legislators are failing us, so are the banks. They do not go after the criminals, either. They check to see if the victim's account should be refunded, and that's it. If you press them, they traditionally seem to not understand why you want more done. It's as if they are saying, "You've got your money back, we'll get ours (tax write off), and the criminal is going to remain free. It's a win-win-win. Is everybody happy?"
One piece of legislation that would seem to work to me, is that middle men in all money transactions should be required to be able to trace those at both ends of the transaction. If you cannot verify who sent the money and who recieved it, you cannot make the transaction.
In addition to the three bank frauds I've had, I've also had someone open a shopping account in my name with a catalog company that provides online purchases. I suggested to the officer today that maybe people shouldn't be allowed to create such accounts online. They should be required to go in to Walmart, or wherever, to open them. The officer suggested that is completely unreasonable, since today people use online shopping so much. Requiring them to go in to the store and show their I.D. is not practical, he suggested. He expressed surprise that I would even believe such a thing could be done. Still, I do -- I do believe it should be done if we cannot trace down the criminals any other way. If we make it so convenient to open an account that the criminal conveniently walks away untouched, of course we should require people to go in and show their I.D. to open an account. Yes, I'm sorry to inconvenience them, but when we make it convenient for criminals to get away with money, convenience has got to stop.
If law enforcement does not have enough time to chase down criminals, it should be banging on your (and city hall's) door to get more money to hire more investigators. And, if it would require such a large amount of money that it becomes impractical to hire enough officers, then laws should be created doing away with the loopholes in our financial system -- you simply have to come into an office and show your I.D. There might well be banks that would like to do this, but they know if they do, customers will abandon them for banks that are not so strict. Legislation would put the banks that want to do things right on equal footing with those that don't.
I don't know, I suppose there are other things that could be done. Maybe a law that requires banks and others to cooperate with police in giving the information necessary to solve the crime. I understand that most of the time, search warrants will be needed, and I am not suggesting the banks should not get search warrants. And, I understand banks generally do cooperate. Still, I wonder if a law spelling out that cooperation would be helpful. And, inasmuch as the banks already have the personal information, they are in better position to investigate the crime than the police. Should a law require them to investigate? Should there be a law that, in order to open an account, you agree to let both the bank and the police have access to your personal information, so no search warrant is necessary? Should there be a law that when a citizen files a report, the police are required to explain what information they have the right to receive from the bank, such as the phone number, email address, etc. that were provided by the applicant?
One law that seems would certainly be beneficial is to require references on all applications. And, that those references be checked before the account is opened. Having references gives the police and victims one more lead to look into if fraud occurs.
Should there be a law that online applicants must electronically transmit a copy of their driver's license? Having that I.D. online could be a great starting point for police when they investigate the crime. Those who are adept at being online are usually able to do such attatchments without difficulty.
Lastly, in addition to laws, police should be trained in how to investigate bank, wire, and online fraud. There might be things I'm not thinking of and the ones I do think of might seem so obvious you shouldn't have to "train" them. Still, teaching the officers that if a phone number is put on the application, it becomes a lead, would be beneficial. Maybe you could "train" the officer in five minutes, but at least train her (or him).
I am thinking you might come up with many other ideas -- laws that would be beneficial. Cool! Please do something, though -- please.
No comments:
Post a Comment