Confronting the identity snatchers

"In today's Britain you can become anyone you want to"

Working undercover BBC reporter Paul Kenyon proves just how easy it is to acquire the identity of someone else.

He was able to obtain a driving licence in the Home Secretary David Blunkett's name as part of an investigation into the rise in the number of crimes involving identity fraud for the new series of the BBC's Kenyon Confronts.

Paul Kenyon joined us live on Breakfast this morning, to explain just how easy it is to steal someone's identity

click here to watch Breakfast's interview in full with Paul Kenyon

There's full coverage and background on the Kenyon Confronts website plus information on how you can put a question to Paul in an interactive forum

Click here to go straight to the website

You can also see a clip from tonight's programme

Click here to see a clip of Kenyon Confronts: ID Snatchers

Kenyon with the Home Secretary's driving licence

Kenyon's report set out to prove just how easy it is snatch other people's identity and shows that basic checks are often never made. It was possible for him to get a provisional driving licence for the Home Secretary even though Mr Blunkett is registered blind - the licence even included a photo of Kenyon.

Kenyon said: "In today's Britain you can become anyone you want to be, it's very, very easy."

For the programme the reporter also "becomes" the author Frederick Forsyth, who famously wrote the book The Day of the Jackal in which an assassin steals the identity of a dead person.

This time he obtained a copy of Mr Forsyth's birth certificate just by telephoning the Family Records Centre, in a move described by former Scotland Yard Fraud Officer Tom Craig as "a serious breach of policy."

In tonight's edition, Kenyon also goes in search of one of the fraudsters. A trail leads him to Blackpool where he discovers one crook who has stolen at least 100 identities to apply for credit potentially worth over £2m.

The programme also hears from some of the victims including one woman who's medical records even got mixed up with the fraudster's.

A Home Office spokeswoman told the programme they were aware of the problems highlighted and were recommending more stringent checks on applications for passports and driving licences, including using iris images and fingerprints.

The spokeswoman added they were considering implementing "some short-term measures which the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) will be adopting to increase security surrounding driving licence applications".

Kenyon Confronts: ID Snatchers will be broadcast on BBC One on Wednesday 8 January at 1930 GMT