Despite years of security improvements and more coordinated law enforcement, the personal identity information that criminals siphon (including credit cards and bank account numbers) is boldly hawked on the Internet. The resale value of identity data increases if it can be readily converted to online purchases, counterfeit credit card manufacture, or more elaborate identity-theft schemes.

The online trade in raw consumer information is highly structured. There are buyers and sellers, intermediaries, Web sites and even service industries. The players are worldwide, but most Web sites are run from computer servers in the former Soviet Union, making them difficult to track or police.

Traders in identity information quickly earn titles, ratings and reputations for the quality of the goods they deliver, which also determines prices. A wealth of institutional knowledge and shared wisdom is doled out to newcomers seeking entry into the market, such as how to move payments and the best time of month to crack accounts.

Roughly 10 million Americans have their personal information misused in some way or another every year, according to the Federal Trade Commission. This adds up to an annual cost of $5 billion for consumers and $48 billion for businesses.