Almost 90,000 people in Ireland have fallen victim to identity fraud, according to new research for National Identity Fraud Prevention Week.
Spokesperson for the campaign Ciaran Dunne says eight out of 10 people routinely throw personal information in the bin and these are easy pickings for fraudsters looking to steal their identities.
The warning comes as new research commissioned by Fellowes for the campaign reveals that while nine out of 10 people believe they are at risk from identity fraud, less than half know what they should do to protect their identities.
National Identity Fraud Prevention Week will run from 6 to 12 October and aims to educate the general public and businesses on what they can do to protect themselves from becoming victims of identity fraud, one of Europe's fastest growing crimes.
Similar campaigns are also taking place in the UK, Holland, France and Belgium to help Europeans keep their identities safe.
Identity theft occurs when an individual's or company's confidential information is obtained by another person in order to assume their identity.
Identity theft is the first step to perpetrating a criminal activity and criminals may use personal information to obtain credit, goods or other services fraudulently. This is known as identity fraud.
Fraudsters get their hands on personal information in a number of ways, including intercepting our mail, 'phishing' email accounts and going through rubbish bins.
