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Identity Deception

    • Sec. 3.5. (a) Except as provided in subsection (c), a person who knowingly or intentionally obtains, possesses, transfers, or uses the identifying information of another person, including the identifying information of a person who is deceased:
    • (1) without the other person’s consent; and
    • (2) with intent to:
    • (A) harm or defraud another person;
    • (B) assume another person’s identity; or
    • (C) profess to be another person;
    • commits identity deception, a Level 6 felony.
    •      (b) However, the offense defined in subsection (a) is a Level 5 felony if:
    • (1) a person obtains, possesses, transfers, or uses the identifying information of more than one hundred (100) persons;
    • (2) the fair market value of the fraud or harm caused by the offense is at least fifty thousand dollars ($50,000); or
    • (3) a person obtains, possesses, transfers, or uses the identifying information of a person who is less than eighteen (18) years of age and is:
    • (A) the person’s son or daughter;
    • (B) a dependent of the person;
    • (C) a ward of the person; or
    • (D) an individual for whom the person is a guardian.
    •      (c) The conduct prohibited in subsections (a) and (b) does not apply to:
    • (1) a person less than twenty-one (21) years of age who uses the identifying information of another person to acquire an alcoholic beverage (as defined in IC 7.1-1-3-5);
    • (2) a minor (as defined in IC 35-49-1-4) who uses the identifying information of another person to acquire:
    • (A) a cigarette, an electronic cigarette (as defined in IC 35-46-1-1.5), or a tobacco product (as defined in IC 6-7-2-5);
    • (B) a periodical, a videotape, or other communication medium that contains or depicts nudity (as defined in IC 35-49-1-5);
    • (C) admittance to a performance (live or film) that prohibits the attendance of the minor based on age; or
    • (D) an item that is prohibited by law for use or consumption by a minor; or
    • (3) any person who uses the identifying information for a lawful purpose.
    •      (d) It is not a defense in a prosecution under subsection (a) or (b) that no person was harmed or defrauded.