NSW government drafting tough new laws to stem identity fraud

The NSW government is seeking new laws to clamp down on identity fraud. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, almost half a million Australians lost a combined $997 million to personal identity fraud in the last year. The ABS ascribed the crime wave to the rapid expansion of internet technology, and electronic data sharing and storage.

Proposed new laws will make it an offence to trade any information that identifies a person, such as their name or address, driver licence, PIN or password, for the purpose of committing a secondary offence, said NSW Attorney-General John Hatzistergos. Besides, proposed laws will be put out for public consultation until late August.

Under such laws, fraud and forgery offences will be simplified, enabling the maximum penalty for serious fraud to be doubled to 10 years in prison.

Additionally, the government intends on introducing them to Parliament in the spring session.