How did people in the past prevent identity theft? I mean before the photos and new secure technology on identity documents were available?
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I would posit that every single person having an identity (vulnerable to theft) is a relatively modern idea. People in the past generally didnt care to verify who you said you were. Unless you had ties to royalty it really didnt matter who this peasant was compared to the next. In they eyes of society they were interchangable. Digital bank accounts, government benefits, and certified credentials being commonplace to exist in socety didnt really come into being until the 20th century. Prior to that, if your job required identification then it would be at the behest of the King or Queen to furnish it upon you. If you counterfit royal identification they’d probably just chop your head off. So thats a pretty good deterrent
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