I am aware of the report in question. I am informed by the Garda authorities that the general issue of identify fraud/theft is not a significant crime problem at present in this jurisdiction. At the same time, it is worth noting that the annual report of An Garda Síochána for 2001 indicates that there has been an increase worldwide, and in this country, in certain types of offences involving credit card fraud and account use in particular.
The Garda bureau of fraud investigation has national responsibility for fraud related crime. In addition to investigating such offences, the bureau plays a proactive role in prevention and early detection. Strategies employed include: presentations to commercial organisations and financial institutions; various training programmes; publication of information and consultations with professional bodies, Government Departments and other agencies.
The recent Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001 provides that offences such as making gain, causing loss and obtaining services by deception are subject on conviction to terms of imprisonment up to five years. A deterrent to certain thefts by deception, of course, is the fact that the Criminal Justice Act 1994 requires that designated bodies, such as financial institutions, take reasonable measures when providing certain services to establish the identity of their customers.
