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When it comes to password security, two Microsoft researchers ask whether everything we know about password stealing is wrong.
They offer somewhat provocative thoughts, such as:
“Getting in and getting out with money is a far harder problem than simply causing destruction. If the goal were mayhem and destruction rather than money-making we might be a great deal worse off.”
Kudos to Time magazine for explaining how to correct the multiple layers and headaches involved with identity theft fraud. Read More
We all want to prevent tax-time identity fraud, but as it’s the no. 1 scam on the IRS Dirty Dozen list for 2012, it’s pretty clear this may take some effort.
One of the best tips is to safeguard your Social Security number. After all, in order to file a phony tax return, a thief simply needs a taxpayer’s name, Social Security number, and birth date.
What is less apparent is that your social networking pages could be helping an identity thief. Read More
The Internal Revenue Service has released its annual “dirty dozen” list of tax scams, and identity theft has earned the no. 1 spot in this year’s ranking.
Taxpayers may encounter the 12 scams at any point during the year, but most peak during filing season as people prepare their tax returns.
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IRS officials raided 150 money-services businesses to determine whether they were involved in identity theft or filing for bogus tax refunds.
The nationwide sweep targeted 105 people in 23 states. This included nine “high-risk” cities per the IRS, including Atlanta; Birmingham, Ala.; Chicago; Los Angeles; Miami; New York; Phoenix; Tampa; and Washington, D.C. Read More
Victims of identity theft describe it almost universally as an incredibly traumatic experience.
That’s the key takeaway from an interactive message board that invited a host of opinions and stories from people who have experienced such fraud. Read More
A Canadian news outlet has shared an article that offers simple tips to protect against identity theft — and it says the number-one way people become victimized is “using public or unsecured wireless Internet connections.” Read More
A new Carnegie Mellon CyLab study has found that kids under the age of 18 are 51 times more likely to become victims of identity theft than their parents. Tracking more than 40,000 juveniles revealed that 10.2% — or 4,311 kids — fell prey to some sort of identity theft or fraud, compared to just 0.2% of adults. This website reports on the CyLab results and says “the main reason minors’ identities are so valuable — specifically their Social Security numbers — is that there’s no process in place to double check what name and birth date are officially attached to each number [so] as long as the identity thief has a Social Security number with a clean history, the thief can attach any name and date of birth to it.” Read More
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Just how do companies decide when to report privacy breaches — to the government, to its customers, and to YOU? The Wall Street Journal has a lengthy piece on the very first steps companies should take upon learning they’ve been hacked. The article says 46 states have laws that specify when a company has to inform people whose records have been exposed in a data breach, but each state interprets the laws differently. According to the WSJ article:
“Usually, if the data stolen include a name and something like a credit-card or Social Security number, then notification laws are triggered. But sometimes if the data are encrypted or there’s a strong reason to believe that the information won’t be misused, there’s no need to tell anyone. In other cases, credit-card data could be so old that all the cards would have expired. Deciding whether to disclose a breach isn’t just a matter of law. Sometimes companies do it because they’re afraid it will get out or just because they think it’s the right thing to do.”
Should there be a program to help service members who end up trying to deal with identity theft while being deployed? Perhaps that’s not a bad idea, especially when you watch the video and read the article in this link about a 14-year Army veteran who learned last month there was a warrant out for her arrest. While she was deployed, someone had stolen her identity and charged medical bills, opened several credit cards and a vehicle loan, and taken out a mortgage. Read More
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