Archive for the ‘Identity Theft’ Category

How Much are You Worth, 2008?

Thursday, November 20th, 2008

How much is your identity worth these days? The going rate for a “complete” identity (including name, address, passport, credit card info, driver’s license number, and even banking passwords): About 120 bucks.

And guess what? The average identity theft-based fraud actually reaps over $21,000 for the perpetrator.

Why so cheap? Primarily it’s because there are so many stolen identities available, so crooks who are willing to take the risk on using someone else’s identity to drain bank accounts and run up bills have a vast number of IDs to choose from. In a perverse way that’s good news: Even if your account and identity information is compromised, there’s a good chance that you won’t actually be the victim of a financial crime because the ID may never be used.

Unfortunately, many consumers make it easy for ID thieves. Related security stats uncovered by Get Safe Online are staggering: 48 percent of internet users who have antivirus protection don’t keep it up to date, 47 percent don’t use any sort of anti-phishing software, and 20 percent use one password for all internet accounts.

There are steps you can take to mitigate identity theft. Check out all the resources at mysecurepc.com.

Too Many Identity Theft Prevention Tips

Tuesday, November 18th, 2008

Holiday season and a bad economy are two big catalysts for identity theft. Thieves are also getting more sophisticated in their approaches. mysecurepc.com has a huge list of identity theft tips. One thing of note is that 63% of identity theft sources are preventable by the consumer.

Be your own Identity Theft Monitor

Thursday, June 5th, 2008

Instead of paying big bucks for a credit monitoring service, you can do nearly everything yourself at no cost. We put together a list of steps for being your own identity theft monitor you can perform. It takes a little perseverance but is worth it and you do not have to share personal information with *another* company.

Doug

How Much is that Person in the Window?

Friday, April 11th, 2008

How much do you think you are worth on Internet? Not much, I’m afraid.

This came off FraudArena and is the going rate for your personal information:

$1.50 credit card number, cvv2
$5-$50 stolen medical ID card
$6-$18 basic identity information
$6 British passport number and bank details
$7 hijacked PayPal account with credentials
$14-16 fulls” are a complete set of data identifiers, i.e. name, address social security number, bank account, and mothers maiden name
$30 Passwords and codes to access consumer credit reports
$30-$300 immigration papers with a social security card

Just thought I would pass this along.

Doug

Photocopiers – The New Security Frontier

Thursday, March 15th, 2007

How many times have you been to a business that “needs” to copy your driver’s license, credit card, or other sensitive information? Car rental places, banks, and medical facilities are notorious for this practice. Another popular use is to make copies of tax returns.

Most photocopiers in the past few years have disk drives in them that help in producing copies. Problem is most of them have no security feature in them (digital overwrite or encryption) so a nefarious person could easily grab the information off the drive. The most vulnerable copiers are ones that are sold to another party. Copiers in small businesses can be easily stolen.

Most small businesses, libraries, tax preparers, and copy shops are not aware of the potential problem or if they were they may not know if their particular copier is a threat.

Next time you make a copy of sensitive information make sure the copier has data security features installed. It can save a large headache.

Doug

DMV and the Social Security Number

Friday, February 9th, 2007

I am appalled at the number of people who freely put their social security number on their driver’s license. Of course I am more appalled that the DMV (department of motor vehicles) would ask such a question.

We were in the DMV waiting our turn for a change to the driver’s license. We moseyed up near the place where people visit to take care of DMV business and heard this conversation several times:

DMV: “A new license, I see. Do you want your social security number on it?”
Applicant: “Um, ok.”

No one questioned if it was necessary (which it is not). Five out of six people answered this way.

Lose your wallet or purse? Get it stolen? There is all a thief needs to steal your identity on your driver’s license. Many places photocopy your driver’s license (like car rental places and health care centers to name a few). Where does that photocopy go?

Like I have said before, the number one prevention mechanism for identity theft is in the mirror.

Doug

Privacy and Identity Theft Prevention Tips

Monday, January 8th, 2007

mysecurepc.com has posted a web page with many privacy tips for everyday life. One of the most unbelievable privacy concerns is the U.S. Post Office. When I read the list of who gets sent your information in their privacy statement I about fell out of my chair.

Also take a look at identity theft prevention tips for statistics on identity theft in 2006. Still at the top of how thieves get your personal information is lost or stolen wallets and purses. Unfortunately, business malfeasance is at the top, too.

Doug

2007 Tax Season – Watch your Mailbox

Wednesday, January 3rd, 2007

It is 2007 and time for tax related information to be mailed out. One of the easiest and effective ways identity thieves get your information is through your mailbox. Crooks know between Jan and April are the prime months for personally sensitive information to reside in mailboxes. After all, tax statements, 1099s, and other related mail has all the information on them an identity thief wants.

One way to help thwart thieves is to get a locking mailbox. They make in nearly impossible for a thief to steal your mail but very easy for the mailman to use. And only you have the key – not the mailman.

Doug

Skype Chat Users Beware

Sunday, December 24th, 2006

If you use Skype’s chat feature you may get an urgent message to download a file named sp.exe and run the program. Once the program is run it installs other programs that can steal passwords and other personal information. The Trojan horse looks like it comes from the Asia region of the world. It also connects to a server and downloads additional code.

As we all know, downloading and executing a program by someone we do not know, it not a good idea without investigation. No legitimate company would do this.

Doug

PIN Block Fraud

Thursday, November 23rd, 2006

The scams never go away. The PIN block fraud involves your debit card. When a debit card is swiped, say at a gas station, the information on it is sent to a server. Included in this information is your debit card number, the data from the magnetic strip, and the encrypted PIN code. When you enter a PIN number it is sent to the server, too. The server unencrypts the PIN number (residing from the magnetic strip) and compares it to the one you entered. Of course they must match in order to complete the transaction.

Here lies the problem: some retailers save your debit card information (including the PIN number) on their server. There is *no* reason to save it – it should be erased after it is used for the current transaction. A hacker then breaks into the retailer’s computer system and steals the debit card number, the encrypted PIN, and the key to unencrypt the PIN. Then counterfeit debit cards are made and it’s off to the nearest ATM machine.

How do you fight it?

A few ways.

1. Use a signature instead of a PIN number when using the debit card.

2. Do not use a debit card; use cash. Especially with no name gas stations, stores, etc. I only use the debit card at one grocery chain and I use cash for other transactions.

Doug