What type of identity theft involves using someone else's identity to commit a crime?

Criminal identity theft involves using someone else's identity to commit a crime, which means that the perpetrator may take on the identity of an unsuspecting victim and engage in illegal activities. This could manifest in various ways, such as providing someone else's name when arrested or using another person's identification to evade legal consequences.

In this scenario, the victim might face legal repercussions for actions they did not commit, making this type of identity theft particularly damaging. Criminal identity theft is distinct from other forms of identity theft, such as financial identity theft, which primarily focuses on financial fraud, or medical identity theft, where someone else’s personal information is used to receive medical services. Synthetic identity theft involves creating a new identity by combining real and fictitious information, rather than misusing someone else's identity directly for criminal acts.