‘I was victim of ID fraud’

She shredded old bills and correspondence and guarded her Internet shopping passwords closely.

But one day last year, a harmless looking piece of mail caught her eye.

The envelope, from mobile phone company Orange, was marked: "Do not disregard - account information enclosed."

But Mrs Rivers was not an Orange customer.

This was the first clue she had become a victim of Britain's fastest growing crime - ID fraud.

Mrs Rivers, 37, from Upper Heyford, said: "I thought the letter from Orange was strange, but I didn't pay too much attention to it at first.

"Later, when I looked at it again, I noticed it was addressed to Mrs Lorna Jane Rivers.

"This is when I thought something wasn't quite right, as I hardly ever use my middle name."

Mrs Rivers found the letter was confirmation of her 'new account' with Orange.

She said: "The bank details were not mine, but all the information was me.

"I phoned Orange the next day and they said I had been the victim of identity fraud."

However, Mrs Rivers said she did not feel too worried as the thief did not appear to have her correct bank details and her date of birth was also slightly wrong.

But there was more bad news to come.

She added: "The next day, I received a letter from Carphone Warehouse, which was pretty much the same as the letter from Orange - and this time I really did panic."

Mrs Rivers called Carphone Warehouse and learned the account information was again incorrect.

Mrs Rivers, who works for Thames Valley Police in the Accidents Criminal Justice Department, said: "I phoned the police and was told that identity fraud is not a crime against me - it is a crime against the companies they are defrauding.

"I was directed to some websites, namely www.identitytheft.gov.uk"

She notified her bank, mortgage company and credit card companies and obtained a credit report from a company called Experian, which records a full credit history.

She also applied to go on CIFAS, a Government agency that notifies you of credit requests made in your name.

Thankfully, the reports showed nothing suspicious and Mrs Rivers hoped her problems were over.

But it was about to get worse.

She said: "We went shopping to Milton Keynes and had awful hassle using our credit card.

"We thought this was because we had notified them of the fraud, but when we got home we found a letter from the credit card company telling us the thief had also got my credit card details.

"The company had been 'watching' my account as the transactions had not been matching my profile."

The fraudster's initial transactions were typical of someone seeing if they could get away with using stolen credit card details - small amounts - a download from iTunes, cinema tickets in London and even a donation to Oxfam.

The Rivers' credit cards were cancelled and new ones issued.

Mrs Rivers, who is even more careful with sensitive information than before, said: "My advice to others is don't be complacent. Don't think this can't happen to you."

Nigel Strick, head of Oxfordshire County Council trading standards, said: "Very few of the transactions we complete these days require face-to-face contact with businesses - it is very rare for us to have to prove who we are in person.

"We rely more and more upon impersonal, electronic transactions and that is why criminals find it so easy to steal identities and cause so much misery.

"And our personal information is all around, from bills and receipts, to junk mail and computer records. Our identity and our personal information are very valuable assets and we must keep them safe and secure at all times."

Tips to protect yourself include checking your personal credit file from one of the main credit reference agencies to see which organisations have accessed your details.

Be extra careful if you live in a property where other people could have access to your mail.

If you move house, tell your bank and credit card company and ask the Royal Mail to redirect your mail for at least a year.

If you ever lose a credit or debit card, cancel them immediately.

Keep your personal documents in a safe place.

Don't throw away entire bills, receipts, bank statements or even junk mail in your name. Destroy them first, preferably through a shredder.

Check statements as soon as they arrive and report any unusual transactions at once.