Maine among states least vulnerable to ID theft — but stay vigilant, expert warns

Map / Courtesy of WalletHub The Pine Tree State is among the least vulnerable to identify theft and fraud, according to a barometer by personal finance website WalletHub.

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By Renee Cordes

Maine ranks among the nation’s safest states for identity theft and fraud, according to a new national study.

To determine where Americans are most susceptible to those types of crimes, researchers at personal finance website WalletHub compared all 50 states and the District of Columbia across 15 key metrics. They include identity theft complaints per capita and the average monetary loss amount caused by fraud.

On the policy front, the study looked at factors including the availability of identity-theft passport programs and data disposals and digital disposal laws in each state. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most vulnerable.

Researchers then determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used those scores to assign rankings.

Florida was ranked the most vulnerable, while Maine at No. 47 was among the least vulnerable. The Pine Tree State also ranked near the bottom for identity-theft complaints per capita, median loss amount due to fraud, and for fraud and other complaints per capita.

Vermont was deemed to be the state least vulnerable to identity theft and fraud.

“In an age where we have sensitive data online in a multitude of places, we risk falling victim to identity theft and fraud whenever there’s a data breach," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

"Living in a state with robust legal protections against identity theft and fraud, such as identity theft passports and cybersecurity task forces, can decrease your risk of falling victim to these crimes, though staying vigilant and protecting yourself online is still the most important," he added.