FTC debuts new "Cyber Mall" to highlight identity theft risks & online security awareness

The FTC has recently opened a site to spread awareness of how easy it is to unknowingly fall victim to online scams & the identity thefts risks associated with social networking sites. Some of the games & scenarios include info on how (&why) to protect your personal information, how to spot scams, including spotting advertising techniques, nigerian (419) letters, free vacations, modeling offers & much more. This is a great site with information everyone young & old can learn from.

From the FTC's news release:
"At the Security Plaza, visitors can build a social networking page and see the unintended consequences of posting personal information. They also get tips on how to keep their computers safe while they're online. In the arcade, visitors can play Info Defender 3 and protect Earthlings from Cyclorian invaders who would steal their identities. The game teaches the importance of protecting personal information, including Social Security numbers."

http://www.ftc.gov/youarehere/

Being wired can unknowingly open oneself to identity & physical theft

With the proliferation of networking & social services (twitter, facebook, myspace, etc...) people can unknowingly provide a thief with all the info they need to steal a person blind. The internet never forgets. Something you mention casually may piece together a complete picture of your life over the course of a year.

For instance, the iPhone & new "droid" phones have built in GPS/Geotagging features . The holidays provide opportunity for people to take lots of photos of Christmas presents, family functions, home interiors & so on. Combine that with the instant upload features of Twitter or Flickr & you have just shown the world that you have a 50" TV hanging on your wall along with your address where it can now be picked up. Should you decide to ever leave the house for a vacation or,.....uh,...... ever, you have just shown that your house may be empty for them to come by & pay your valuables a visit.

With the holidays being in full swing there will be plenty of digital locations where a person may post something about their family online. It can be easy to provide family members names, locations, birthdays, pet names, favorite cars, etc.... giving a complete guide to all of the favorite security answers that may be asked should one forget their password to an online account. Remember, this could be something that you may not even do. Your nephew, niece, cousin, etc... who visits may even do this not realizing the implications of their actions. It is very simple to associate family members making it childsplay to get all the info a thief needs to access your online identy & claim your physical one as well.

http://www.augmentedplanet.com/2009/11/do-you-care-about-privacy/

http://www.mobile-spy.com/

http://iphone.iusethis.com/app/gpstracker

Identity thieves can buy bank account details lawfully from ebay, craigslist, etc...

Anyone has the ability to purchase used ATM's from another individual with no regulation whatsoever. Most of the time these ATM's still contain all of the users bank info for at least the past 6 months. The short story is that for as little as $500 a person can lawfully purchase thousands of credit/debit numbers, personal info, bank account numbers & pins for thousands of users.
http://realtysecurity.com/blog/2009/11/17/i-bought-an-atm-off-craigslist-for-750-w1000-ccs-on-it-yup/

Hancock Fabrics customers in several states experience ATM banking theft

Customers in several states who shopped at Hancock Fabrics have had their bank accounts emptied via ATM withdrawls. It is presumed that everything originated in Wisconsin however, people as far away as California & Missouri have had their checking accounts emptied sometimes, months after shopping.
http://www.kmov.com/home/b-Developing-b-More-people-coming-forward-in-money-scam-69902407.html

http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2009/10/17/news/local/doc4ad8dd6fe28ef768993333.txt

Medicare mails postcards with SS#'s

An insurance mailer contracted by Medicare has mailed out postcards with recipients social security numbers in plain sight. They have offered credit monitoring for 1 year but after that, people are on their own.
http://news.aol.com/article/insurance-mailer-exposes-80000-medicare/775071

Police arrest victim after DNA database linked ID thief to victim

An Oregon woman was recently held overnight after warrants had been issued for her arrest. It seems that various law enforcement agencies across the country had incorrect data entered into them due to a Florida woman using the Oregon womans identity to commit various crimes including prostitution & theft. In some cases, the victims DNA & photo had been linked with the thiefs causing greater confusion. Click the link below to read the whole story.
http://www.katu.com/news/local/69946642.html

This problem began when the Oregon womans purse became lost 5 years ago. She had taken the precautionary measure (at the time) of cancelling her credit cards & getting new identification cards but that did little good.

FTC Will Grant Three-Month Delay of Enforcement of ‘Red Flags’

FTC Will Grant Three-Month Delay of Enforcement of ‘Red Flags’ Rule Requiring Creditors and Financial Institutions to Adopt Identity Theft Prevention Programs

http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2009/04/redflagsrule.shtm

The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA).... Some examples of creditors are finance companies; automobile dealers that provide or arrange financing; mortgage brokers; utility companies; telecommunications companies; non-profit and government entities that defer payment for goods or services; and businesses that provide services and bill later, including many lawyers, doctors, and other professionals.

I want to remind you that ID Theft is a serious issue. Liabilities for carelessness still exist even though the FTC is delaying enforcement of this rule. As noted in the release, entities that are covered by other agencies may not benefit from this FTC extension at all. The liabilities for you and your business still exist even though the enforcement of this particular rule has been delayed.

With all the press-releases on this topic, when the FTC does decide to enforce the rule do you think that either "I didn't know about this" or "I didn't have time" is something you want to say in your own defense?

This has been a topic that should have been on the minds of business owners and government agencies since January 1, 2008 when the Rules became effective. The November 2007 announcement is coming up on its 2 year anniversary.

John Gardner Online

John Gardner, the man I credit as the Premiere authority on Identity Theft issues, has a blog here:
http://johngardneronline.com/

I've updated my links at right. I encourage you to visit his website and subscribe. Much of the information I post here in the future may well come from or simply be a link to a posting on his blog.

If it weren't for John's efforts to educate everyone about ID Theft, I would never have met you or become involved with your company as a Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist.

I've just finally ordered his newest book "If You are Me, then Who am I?" today and I'll go ahead and recommend that you do the same. Information is on his website here http://johngardneronline.com/?page_id=3

Here is part of his Bio posted on his site here http://johngardneronline.com/?page_id=2

John P. Gardner, Jr. is an attorney and one of the nation’s leading experts on Identity Theft. While others were scrambling to tell people to lock their mailboxes and shred their credit card statements, Mr. Gardner was warning consumers of the potential health risks, Social Security and tax issues, financial disasters, and the reality that they could face false imprisonment as a result of someone stealing their identity. He has consulted with various State Governmental entities including members of the Kentucky Senate, the Michigan House of Representatives, and the South Carolina Senate Finance and House Judiciary Committee Staff on Identity Theft, Privacy and Data Protection legislation. He has helped to implement Identity Theft Protection programs which today protect hundreds of thousands of Americans identities and even more recently, he has been consulting with Major Corporations, Hospitals, Government Agencies and Small Businesses on how to better protect the Identities and Non-public Information of their employees and customers. Mr. Gardner has traveled extensively across North America speaking to groups and providing training to many organizations on Identity Theft, Privacy, and Data Protection.