Identity Theft

Online theft not the main cause of identity fraud

Josh Smith Dec 7th 2009 @ 2:00PM EST Filed Under: Shopping, Technology, Identity Theft

For most of us, the terms identity theft or fraud bring to mind fraudulent Web sites that try to phish for our personal information or viruses that send our sensitive data to a criminal. Surprisingly, a new study by Travelers Insurance revealed that the information gathering that makes identity fraud possible most often takes place offline.

Identity fraud has been growing dramatically, by 22% each of the past two years. Based on the incidents reported to Travelers, the number one cause of identity fraud is old-fashioned burglary in which a wallet, purse, other personal identification, or computer are stolen. Theft of personal property was responsible for 78% of the cases of identity fraud with online issues or data breaches only accounting for 14%.

Continue reading Online theft not the main cause of identity fraud

H1N1 scam spreading like the disease itself; CDC issues warning

Mitch Lipka Dec 3rd 2009 @ 12:30PM EST Filed Under: Fraud, Identity Theft, Consumer Ally

Scammers are now capitalizing on fear of H1N1 (swine) flu and the limited availability of the vaccine to steal people's personal information.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a warning that an email is being circulated purporting to be about a CDC-sponsored state vaccination program. The email asks that recipients click a link to create a "personal profile" that collects personal information and installs malicious coding on the computers of those who click it.

Continue reading H1N1 scam spreading like the disease itself; CDC issues warning

Fakes: How scammers are targeting you this holiday season

Josh Smith Oct 28th 2009 @ 1:00PM EST Filed Under: Shopping, Simplification, Technology, Identity Theft

With Christmas less than 60 days away, the shopping season has already begun, which means scammers are on the lookout for some holiday happiness of their own in the form of your money and information. In order to keep you abreast of the latest holiday scams we spoke to Fred Touchette, a security analyst who writes about security threats at the Digital Degenerate for AppRiver, to learn what to watch for as you start your holiday shopping.

Scams don't wait for the holidays, but scammers do take advantage of the increased shopping and distraction when things get busy to take your money and personal information. Fred shared the following three Holiday specific scams with WalletPop so that you don't get taken this year.

Continue reading Fakes: How scammers are targeting you this holiday season

Free paper shredding Saturday

Aaron Crowe Oct 17th 2009 @ 12:01AM EST Filed Under: Fantastic Freebies, Identity Theft

If you don't have a paper shredder and have documents that need shredding, then Saturday, Oct. 17 is your lucky day.

The Better Business Bureau and its partners are holding what they call "Secure Your ID Day" on Saturday across North America to help prevent identity theft.

Papers and floppy disks will be shredded for free on the spot at participating BBB offices.

I can see you sitting at your computer

Tom Barlow Oct 5th 2009 @ 2:00PM EST Filed Under: Technology, Identity Theft

In an era when the most esoteric James Bond spy gadget is available to anyone with a credit card, your expectations of privacy are sadly naive.

Take, for example, the telephone sold by Hammacher Schlemmer. The seemingly innocuous princess phone contains a motion detector and a microphone. You can program it so that, when someone wanders into the room, the phone will silently call you and allow you to evesdrop on the conversation.

This and other devices give me the creeps. For example, witness:

The peephole reverser. This lens purports to allow peepers to see into the rooms behind security peepholes. Reporter Erin Andrews discovered to her misfortune how slimeballs can make use of peepholes to invade privacy.
Envelope X-RAY spray that turns paper translucent long enough to read personal info off of a bank statement.
The Computer Snooper, a device the size of a computer plug that, when inserted between the keyboard cable and the port in your computer, will record all your keystrokes without risking detection by security software.
The Bionic Ear Sound Amplifier allows the wearer to hear conversations100 yards away.
Wrist watch digital cameras, right from Q's lab, are actually on the bulky side for covert cameras.
And don't overlook smart phones; am I talking on mine, or taking a video of you?

The sad conclusion? If someone is determined to invade your privacy, the tools available are readily available and almost undetectable. Perhaps the best countering strategy is the one I've adopted; live a boring life.

Over half of business aren't securing your personal info

Josh Smith Sep 27th 2009 @ 3:00PM EST Filed Under: Credit, Technology, Identity Theft

Take a minute and think about how many companies and institutions you have entrusted with your personal information like a Social Security number or bank account. More than likely you've given this information to an apartment complex, school, loan company, banks and credit card companies. You'd be surprised to know that half of them aren't securing that data!

According to a survey of 500 companies, 55% aren't securing your personal data other than credit card information as required by the recent PCI-DSS regulations and 52% aren't proactive in managing privacy and data protection risks.

Another interesting statistic to come out of the survey is that 79% of the surveyed companies have reported a data breach; with 41% of those reporting five or more data breaches.

The really bad news, especially for those of us who love to support smaller businesses, is that organizations with less than 1,000 employees fared far worse in compliance and protection of data. These organizations simply cannot meet the demands, both in labor and in cost, to deal with compliance and data security.

While there's no excuse for a company not safeguarding your personal data, which they require from you to do business, the lack of PCI-DSS compliance isn't surprising. Having dealt with this in a small part the regulations that need complied with and the surveys that need filled out are not simple to understand; especially if an organization doesn't have an individual dedicated to Information security.

Given the common occurrence of data breaches perhaps this news isn't that surprising after all but the good news, if you want to look for it, is that three-quarters of companies are working on PCI-DSS compliance to protect your credit card and other personal information. For smaller organizations, compliance and security should improve as the software and database systems they use get upgraded to support the compliance and better shield your personal information.

Until security becomes a top concern for more companies you'll need to stay vigilant and cautious about who you entrust with your personal information. The fact that the government scored a collective "C" on computer security at its last audit doesn't set to great of an example for the private sector.

Veterans beware: This scam targets you

Mitch Lipka Sep 25th 2009 @ 1:30PM EST Filed Under: Ripoffs and Scams, Health, Identity Theft, Consumer Ally

Being someone who tries to steal from people through scams means having to come up with some believable proposition with the potential to get the person on the other end to give up money or private information. The latest scam in this never-ending series is targeting those who served the United States in the Armed Forces.

Calls are being placed to veterans telling them the Department of Veterans Affairs needs their credit card information to update their prescription records.

The VA is warning veterans nationwide that the calls are not coming from them or anyone acting on the government's behalf and urging the veterans to not give out their personal financial information to these callers.

"America's Veterans have become targets in an inexcusable scam that dishonors their service and misrepresents the Department built for them," Dr. Gerald Cross, the VA's undersecretary for health, said in issuing the warning. "VA simply does not call veterans and ask them to disclose personal financial information over the phone."

The VA said it found out about the scam from veterans organizations that heard about the calls. The callers are told that the VA has recently changed its procedures from giving out medication and therefore needs their credit card numbers.

"VA has not changed its processes for dispensing prescription medicines," Cross said. "Nor has VA changed its long-standing commitment to protect the personal information of this nation's veterans."

Those who have any questions regarding the VA's services can call their VA medical center or 877-222-8387.

Personal finance expert shares her identity theft story

Geoff Williams Sep 5th 2009 @ 3:00PM EST Filed Under: Banks, Credit, Ripoffs and Scams, Identity Theft, Banking-checking-account, Banking-savings-account

It was a Sunday morning, in Hyattsville, Md., right about 10:30 a.m., and not exactly the time you would expect your purse to be stolen from your car while you're paying for gas. But that's what happened to Harrine Freeman, igniting a nightmarish plunge into the murky waters of identity theft.

Of course, if it can happen to Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, I suppose it's not surprising this happened to Freeman. But still, this case seems more interesting given that Freeman is a personal finance expert who knows something about identity theft. Her firm, H.E. Freeman, offers credit repair, and Freeman often conducts personal finance workshops at schools, churches and other organizations.

Freeman, who I interviewed about a year ago in an article that appeared on CreditCards.com, dropped me a line, thinking that WalletPop readers might be interested in her story, and I think she's right.

Continue reading Personal finance expert shares her identity theft story

Fed Chief Bernanke is identity theft victim

Ken and Daria Dolan Aug 27th 2009 @ 6:00PM EST Filed Under: Ripoffs and Scams, The Dolans, Fraud, Identity Theft

You can now add Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to the long list of the the rich and famous who have been victims of identity theft.

It's just been revealed that while Bernanke was in the throes of dealing with the financial crisis and Wall Street collapse last summer, he was faced with his own financial crisis at home. He and his wife were one of hundreds of victims of a $2.1 million identity theft scheme.

While at a local coffee shop, a thief had swiped his wife Anna's purse off the back of her chair. Her purse contained her wallet, driver's license, their joint checkbook, four credit cards and her Social Security card. Unfortunately for her and Ben, their home address and telephone number were also printed on their checks.

Continue reading Fed Chief Bernanke is identity theft victim

Starting Saturday, the TSA wants to know your birthday

Jason Cochran Aug 13th 2009 @ 8:00AM EST Filed Under: Transportation, Travel, Identity Theft

In most areas of our lives, we're doing everything we can to reduce identity theft by reducing the amount of personal information released to businesses when we buy things from them.

But in one area, a new law wil force us to divulge more: On Saturday, Aug. 15, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will require every American to include their birth date and gender in their passenger information if they want to book a seat on a domestic aircraft. The TSA also wants every person's I.D. to precisely match the name with which they book their tickets.

Although the official start date is Aug. 15, some airlines will get on board in the fall. But the change is coming.

The TSA says that the added personal details must be given during the booking process, after which they will be used to check computer records of suspicious passengers. Passengers shouldn't have to recite their true birth dates at the TSA's airport checkpoints, which should be good news for Joan Rivers.

It's part of the TSA's new Secure Flight initiative, which is setting up rules to allow government inspectors tighter control of the people who are permitted to fly. The TSA says that the additional information will help its clerks prevent mismatches that sometimes wind up detaining innocent passengers for hours on end.

Continue reading Starting Saturday, the TSA wants to know your birthday

We're complaining more but help is harder to find

Mitch Lipka Jul 30th 2009 @ 5:30PM EST Filed Under: Ripoffs and Scams, Fraud, Recession, Identity Theft, Consumer Ally

Consumers have more to complain about, but the agencies they are complaining to have fewer resources with which to help them, a national survey found. A lot of problems people are having, the survey said, were directly related to the country's sour economy.

"It's ironic that at the same time that more people are asking state and local consumer agencies for help, their budgets are shrinking," said Susan Grant, director of consumer protection for the Consumer Federation of America.

"They deserve public support so they can continue to protect consumers from losing their hard-earned cash and ensure that the marketplace is fair for legitimate businesses."

Grant said that 62% of the consumer agencies surveyed reported an increase in complaints in 2008. The average increase was 10%, she said, with some seeing increases by as much as 47%. At the same time, officials reported staff and service cuts due to shrinking state and county budgets.

Continue reading We're complaining more but help is harder to find

Phony checks top list of ten most common money scams

Mitch Lipka Jul 23rd 2009 @ 7:00PM EST Filed Under: Ripoffs and Scams, Fraud, Consumer Complaints, Identity Theft, Buyer Beware, Consumer Ally

Nearly 45% of people reporting being scammed were ripped off using a phony check scheme -- by far the largest type of fraud reported in the first six months of this year, according to the National Consumers League. The average dollar loss in that type of scam: $3,178.

The group said top-reported scams are linked to the down economy. Bad check scams often are tied to work-from-home proposals or apparent schemes to make easy money. A survey by the league found that due to the state of the economy, people are more likely to consider the idea of working from home.

Continue reading Phony checks top list of ten most common money scams

Skip nav