Indiana Identity Theft Laws

Indiana criminalizes identity theft under a statute titled identity deception, Indiana Code 35-43-5-3.5. Indiana's official statute site could not be reached in a citable form for this page, so the exact definition and penalty tiers of that Indiana statute are not stated here. What this page can confirm and cover in full depth is the Indiana Attorney General's identity theft resources, and the federal rights that apply to every Indiana resident regardless of the state statute's details.

This page addresses Indiana state law where it could be confirmed, plus the federal identity theft framework under 18 U.S.C. § 1028 and the Fair Credit Reporting Act. For the full federal picture, including IdentityTheft.gov's recovery process and the 51-state penalty comparison, see our identity theft laws hub.

Indiana's Identity Deception Statute

Indiana addresses identity theft through a criminal statute titled identity deception, codified at Indiana Code 35-43-5-3.5. Indiana's legislative website renders the current statute text through a single-page application that this page's research could not access in a citable form, so this page does not state the statute's specific definition, offense classification, or dollar-value penalty thresholds. Readers who need those specifics for a real situation should review the statute directly at iga.in.gov or confirm the current classification with an Indiana-licensed attorney or the Attorney General's office below.

What can be said generally, and without relying on any single unconfirmed source, is that identity theft of some form is a criminal offense in Indiana, as it is in every state, and that Indiana's Attorney General maintains a dedicated unit for victims of it.

Reporting Identity Theft to the Indiana Attorney General

The Indiana Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division operates an Identity Theft Unit specifically for this purpose. The office states that victims of identity theft can seek assistance from the unit, which provides investigative services to help in the prosecution of identity thieves. The Attorney General's identity theft page also offers educational speakers on identity-theft prevention for civic and nonprofit organizations, and features prominent credit-freeze guidance alongside a separate resource section on security breaches.

Indiana's Attorney General also runs the state's Do Not Call registry and a related telephone-privacy complaint portal. Those programs are adjacent to identity theft rather than part of it, but the same office can point a caller toward the right resource if unwanted calls are part of what led to a suspected identity theft.

Minor and Protected-Consumer Credit Freezes in Indiana

Whether Indiana has enacted its own minor or protected-consumer security freeze statute, similar to the state-specific freeze laws several neighboring states adopted before the 2018 federal baseline, was not determined during this page's research. That gap is not the same as a confirmed absence; it means the question is genuinely open. Indiana parents and guardians do not need to wait on that answer, however, because federal law independently guarantees a free freeze for a protected minor's credit file regardless of which state the family lives in, covered in the federal section below.

The Federal Layer: Rights That Apply No Matter Where You Live

Federal law fills in strong, well-documented protections for every identity theft victim, including Indiana residents. Since 2018, federal law has required consumer reporting agencies to let any consumer, and a minor's representative, place and lift a credit freeze for free. A fraud alert placed with one credit bureau must be shared with the other two, lasts one year by default, and can be extended to seven years once you have filed an FTC Identity Theft Report. Under FCRA § 605B (15 U.S.C. § 1681c-2), a victim who submits an identity theft report can also get specific fraudulent information blocked from appearing on a credit report altogether.

IdentityTheft.gov, the Federal Trade Commission's free recovery site, asks what happened, builds a personalized recovery plan, and, for account holders, pre-fills the letters and forms most victims need while tracking progress through each step. See our guide to reporting identity theft for exactly how that process works, and our comparison of credit freezes versus fraud alerts for which tool fits a given situation.

If You Are a Victim of Identity Theft in Indiana

Start with IdentityTheft.gov to generate a free federal recovery plan and report. File a police report with your local Indiana law enforcement agency, since some creditors and processes require one. Contact the Indiana Attorney General's Identity Theft Unit directly for state-level assistance and to ask about any current state-specific protections. Place a freeze with all three major credit bureaus, which is free by federal law regardless of what Indiana's own statute provides. If the theft involves your child's information, our guide to child identity theft covers the federal minor-freeze right and the warning signs specific to that situation.

Information last verified on 2026-08-13. Indiana-specific statutory details on this page are limited by access barriers on the state's official code site during research, and are noted as such throughout. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Related Resources

• Identity Theft Laws: Federal Rules and State Penalties
• How to Report Identity Theft
• Credit Freeze vs. Fraud Alert
• Child Identity Theft: Warning Signs, Credit Checks, and the Minor Freeze Right

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Last updated: 2026-08-13.