What are the techniques used by identity thieves to steel personal/private information?

Answer 1

Contact your local police department, I'm sure they'll be interested in your curiosity

Answer 2

probably the worst offender for Internet users is phishing, when you get an email, purportedly from one of your vendors/banks/mutual fund co./etc. saying they need to verify your id/password/acct no or whatever and thereby gain access to your account. No legitimate company will EVER ask you for such info.
any such attempt is clearly some one trying to get your info to use feloniously.
I have been id theft victim. One thing you should do to protect yourself is to see if your state has a
law enabling you to LOCK UP you credit files. At least 17 states have made this provision available, hope yours is one of them.
This will protect you from any one from using your SS no. or whatever to obtain credit in your name.
If my state had had that I would have never had the problem.
above all be alert and think carefully about any info that might represent an attempt to compromise your security.
also google identity theft.

Answer 3

I won't go into detail for security reasons. One method is digging through trash and looking for information there. Another is hacking into corporate computers. The most common is attempting to trick you into giving it to them.