Topeka, Manhattan have largest percentage of identity theft in Kansas

TOPEKA (KSNT) – Topeka and Manhattan took the top spots for the highest concentrations of people impacted by identity theft in Kansas.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) keeps track of identity theft reports. In 2022, there were 5.1 million reports of identity theft across the U.S., according to FTC data.

In Kansas, there were a total of 6,511 cases of identity theft reported in 2022 to the FTC. Credit card fraud and bank fraud were the two highest categories of identity theft. Topeka had the highest percentage of identity theft in the Kansas metro areas with 0.43% of the population impacted.

Once identity thieves have your personal information they can drain bank accounts, run up credit card charges, open utility accounts and even get medical treatment on your insurance plan, according to IdentityTheft.gov.

There could be clues someone has your information such as unknown bank withdrawals, not receiving bills or mail, merchants refusing checks, debt collectors calling for debts that aren’t yours and more.

Identity Theft TypeNumber of ReportsPercentageCredit Card Fraud1,66329%Bank Fraud1,58028%Other Identity Theft96217%Government Documents or Benefits Fraud89716%Employment or Tax-Related Fraud60311%Loan or Lease Fraud55410%Phone or Utility Fraud2524%FTC data on identity theft reports from 2022.

The FTC advises Americans to closely guard their social security number and shred charge receipts, copies of credit applications and other sensitive information. Individuals who’ve already been victimized should place a credit freeze or fraud alert on their credit report and close any accounts that were tampered with.

Metro AreaPopulation SizeNumber of ReportsReports Per 100kPercent of Population AffectedTopeka125,4995422330.43Manhattan53,8292211680.41Wichita399,4111,3402090.34Lawrence95,7942512070.26The FTC ranks metro areas based on the number of reports per 100,000 population.

To report cases of identity theft visit the FTC Report Fraud website or IdentityTheft.gov.

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