Technology is Helping Victims and Fraudsters
By Michael Eggebrecht, Community Editor at CIOZone
Last year, 11.1 million U.S. adults were the victim of identity fraud — 4.8 percent of the population. That’s good for a 12 percent increase from 9.9 million the prior year, according to Javelin Strategy & Research, which released its annual identity fraud survey Feb. 9. Along with that increase, the total annual fraud amount in 2009 increased 12.5 percent, from $48 billion to $54 billion. At the same time, the average fraud resolution time fell from 30 hours in 2008 to 21 hours last year…
Basic Laptop Security Prevents Identity Theft
By Robert Siciliano, ID Theft Expert and Security Consultant to Intelius.com
In 2003, an estimated 1.5 million laptops were stolen worldwide. Today, that number has climbed to 2.6 million. That’s a 70% increase in just a few years. That’s one stolen laptop every 12 seconds. Laptop computers have been the source of some of the biggest data breaches of all time. Unfortunately your security, or lack thereof, is in the hands of others.
Top 10 Identity Theft Predictions For 2010
By Robert Siciliano, ID Theft Expert and Security Consultant to Intelius.com
I’ve joined forces with the Identity Theft Resource Center to expand the pool of knowledge about identity theft issues. As nationally recognized experts in this crime, we have come up with ten predictions for what the nation can expect in the area of identity theft in 2010 and beyond.
Facebook Stung By Social Media ID Theft
By Robert Siciliano, ID Theft Expert and Security Consultant to Intelius.com
The problem with social media identity theft is that when it takes over your account, all the people that you communicate with within your account may believe the identity thief is you. And when that identity thief begins to ask for money, from your friends and from your family and your coworkers, then they may actually pull money out of their pocket and send it via Western Union to the imposter. They think that you’ve actually come into the trouble that the identity thief is saying you’re in.
What Could Possibly Be Worse Than A Virus?
By Robert Siciliano, ID Theft Expert and Security Consultant to Intelius.com
Once a predator uses your Internet connection to go to into the bowels of the web, your Internet Protocol address, which is connected to your ISP billing address, is now considered one that is owned by a criminal. If law enforcement happens to be chatting with that person, who’s using your Internet connection to trade lurid porn, then someone may eventually knock on your door at 3 AM with a battering ram. And in freakish and relatively new twist, hackers can use a virus to crack your network and gain remote control access, and then store illicit porn on your hard drive.
Congressional Leak Spotlights P2P User Act
By Robert Siciliano, ID Theft Expert and Security Consultant to Intelius.com
Congress is still considering the Informed P2P User Act, a law that would supposedly make it safer to use peer-to-peer file sharing software, an effort that is similar to banning mosquitoes from sucking blood. It just isn’t happening…
Ten Common Identity Theft Myths Dispelled
By Robert Siciliano, ID Theft Expert and Security Consultant to Intelius.com
Identity theft is preventable. As with any other crime, the risk will always be there. But there are many things people can do to minimize that risk, both online and offline.
Social Media Scams Plague Networks
By Robert Siciliano, ID Theft Expert and Security Consultant to Intelius.com
We hear about a new Twitter phishing scam almost daily, whether it’s via direct messaging or a shortened URL. Not too long ago, it was big news when someone had their Facebook account jacked by someone who impersonated the victim, claiming to have lost their wallet in the UK and begging for a money wire. Lately, I see a story about another victim every week…
Social Media Policies for Business Part II
By Tom McLain, Attorney with Chorey, Taylor & Feil
Many social media sites are set up so that a participant needs to endorse others in order to gain credibility; however, such endorsements may give the appearance that the company is actually giving the endorsement. Thus, the company has an interest to protect in connection with any social media account used that identifies an employee of the company.
Idaho Tops The Most Spammed States Report
By Cara Garretson, Veteran Business and Technology Journalist
Residents in states with a high concentration of small and medium-sized businesses are targeted most by spammers, according to a recent report by e-mail security vendor MessageLabs, a Symantec subsidiary that analyzes billions of inbound messages collected by its data centers around the world.
