Everything old is new again, even scams.
On the Krystal 93 morning show today, Summit County sheriff Jaime FitzSimons was reminiscing with host Tom Fricke about layaway plans. Stores would hold onto your merchandise until you were ready to pay for it, and when you were paid up in full it was yours to take home. The sheriff and Tom fondly remembered doing it for big-ticket items like bicycles and computers.
Scammers remember those days too. Here is how it works with stolen identity, according to the sheriff:
“So the fraudsters are stealing your identity or purchasing your identity on the dark web, and they’re setting up accounts with these websites. They’re getting all kinds of merchandise shipped to them to what they call a ‘drop location’ – in other words, a fraudulent address. And you don’t know about the fraud that’s occurred until either you get a delinquent notice from one of these websites, or you’ve checked your credit and you find that your identity has been stolen.”
By the time authorities are involved there is little or no way to trace it, FitzSimons says. He recommends checking your statements often for suspicious purchases, especially multiple small amounts leading to one or more large payments. He also recommends following best practices for protecting your online identity, like strong, unique passwords and two-factor identification. Report identity theft immediately. The sooner you act, the better your odds of recouping losses. (As of Oct. 23, 2025, the Federal identity theft website is inactive due to government shutdown.)