Identity theft continues to plague consumers, topping the list of fraud complaints reported to the Federal Trade Commission last year.

Yet studies have shown that most identity theft, including the most severe cases, has nothing to do with the Internet. In 2004, computer crimes accounted for only 11.6 percent of identity fraud in which the cause was known, according to a Better Business Bureau and Javelin Strategy & Research study. Half of those crimes stemmed from spyware, software that surreptitiously tracks users online.

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