I think you're proving the authors point by misunderstanding it. Using the term 'Identity Theft' buys into the way that the corporations involved want us to thi

I think you're proving the authors point by misunderstanding it. Using the term 'Identity Theft' buys into the way that the corporations involved want us to think about the credit market. It allows them to take a crime against them and allow it to blow back against someone that was not a party to the fraud. But what the Equifax hack is now forcing people to confront is that no consumer is able to keep their information private. The system won't allow it. So forcing consumers to be in any way culpable for what is actually fraud against the corporation that is extending credit is wrong and we need to adjust our terminology to make this explicit. All the pain that you're noting is imposed by the credit system, not the criminal who's "stealing" your identity. We're not victims of the criminal's crime, we're victims of the system's response to that crime. And that's an important distinction. The fact that we treat identity theft any different than if the bank (or other credit-extending institution) was defrauded/robbed through some other means (confidence scheme, armed robbery, etc) isn't correct and if we, as consumers, expect that situation to change, we need to reject biased terminology that frames the issue in the light that the corporations want it to be framed. Your identity wasn't stolen, the bank was defrauded due to insufficient authentication procedures. When you say it that way, it becomes ridiculous that the consumer should have to endure the ordeal that they currently do.