Mississippi Identity Theft Laws

• Identity Theft – Obtaining or attempting to obtain personal identity information of another person with the intent to unlawfully use it, without authorization, to obtain financial credit, purchase or lease real or personal property, get a job, gain access to medical records, or commit any illegal act
• Fraudulent Use of Identity – Making false statements about your entity, social security, credit card or debit card number or other identifying information to fraudulently get anything of value
• False Information – Providing a false statement about your identity to cops to mislead the officer
• Mail Fraud – Succeeding or attempting a scheme to defraud or get money, property, or services without lawful payment, or other advantage by false promises or representations to sell or supply anything that’s transmitted by mail, phone, newspaper, wire, electronic communications, etc.

If another crime was committed in the process of the identity theft, for example theft for stealing a license and credit cards from a purse, you can also be charged with that crime.

• Identity Theft – A felony punishable by 2 to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000, or if less than $250 is stolen, the person can be found guilty of a misdemeanor and be sentenced to up to 6 months in jail and fined up to $1,000, at the discretion of the court. Restitution to the victim(s) may be ordered also.
• Fraudulent Use of Identity – First offense is punished by $5,000 fine and 5 years in prison at most, a second or subsequent offense is not more than $10,000 fine and 10 years prison. Defendants may also need to pay their victims restitution also.
• False Information – A misdemeanor that can be punished by up to a $5,000 fine and one year in jail
• Mail Fraud – The penalty is at most 5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.