The U.S. Department on Thursday charged 53 people in New Jersey for their connection to a identity theft ring. The identity theft ring operated acted as broker for identity documents, such as Social Security cards, which were used to commit credit card, tax and bank fraud.

Members of the identity theft ring some how obtained Social Security cards that were issued to Asian immigrants working in the American territories like American Samoa, Guam and Saipan, The identities were then sold to people of which a majority were of Korean descent. The identity theft ring would then help the purchasers of the information use the cards to obtain driver’s licenses and other identity documents from their home state. The ring also produced counterfeit driver’s licenses as well as other identity documents. Some of the defendants in this case also opened bank accounts as well as lines of credit using the fraudulent information.

The identity theft ring has caused millions of dollars of damage to U.S. banks, credit card companies, lenders and others. The identity theft ring is basically a one stop shop for identity theft. What ever you needed they could provide it for you and help use use it successfully.

It’s scary to see identity theft rings of this size functioning so well with such a large reach and clientele. According to U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman “The sheer scope of the fraud – and the organization that allegedly committed it – is remarkable,” he goes on later to say in a press conference that “This type of crime puts all of us at risk, not just because of the cost to our financial institutions, but also because of the threat posed by fake identification documents.”

Dallas identity theft ringleader Keasha Antoinette Turner was sentenced to six years in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $100,000 in restitution.

Turner worked with two Citibank employees as accomplices. Andrea Renee Harris and Christianna M. Wright, who worked in Citibank’s customer service and collections department, shared their access to account information with Turner. Turner used that information to receive Visa and MasterCard credit cards and make fraudulent purchases.

Turner pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud in August. Harris was sentenced to 18 months in prison, and ordered to restitution in the amount of $11,812 after her guilty plea to a bank fraud charge. Wright received a 34-month sentence, and must pay $51,312 in restitution.

The case was investigated by the US Secret Service and prosecuted by Assistant US Attorney David Jarvis.

Senior US District Judge A. Joe Fish said before sentencing Turner that she had been involved in ID theft and fraud for many years causing significant pain and stress for her victims.

Car salesman, hospital employees and credit card companies—we give our personal and financial information out all the time to total strangers. We have to.

But how can you protect yourself from identity theft and credit card fraud? Truthfully, there isn’t much you can do, but LifeLock can sure help you protect yourself and your family.

LifeLock is the industry leader in identity theft protection services. Visit their website at LifeLock.com to see why their innovative and comprehensive program has been the choice for nearly 1.5 million consumers.