Simply obtaining an individual's name and address may be enough for a criminal to commit ID or banking fraud, one expert has suggested.
Danny Harrison, head of mobile phone insurance at CPP, suggested that the exposure of such basic information may enable a fraudster to then access other goods and services with those details.
He stated: "If you've got somebody's name and address you can buy things like a driving licence, [get access to] payslips and mortgage statements."
Mr Harrison warned that those documents could constitute sufficient ID for presenting to a bank or mobile phone company in order to "start taking out credit in that person's name".
Research recently conducted for CPP found that over a fifth of the UK's adult population has either lost a mobile phone or had one stolen.
In addition, two-thirds said they have found a wallet or purse and more than a third have come across house keys - with 92 per cent claiming to have returned such items to their owners.
