bank security
Do You Monitor Your Credit
ID Thief (source: creditscore.net)
We know that we need credit monitoring, right? If you didn’t know, you do now! So what do we need to look for in a monitoring service? Today, we will discuss the traits that are good, the ones that are bad, and the ones that are simply ugly.
Good:
Is the brand clearly stated? Did you know that “freecreditreport.com” is actually Experian?
What do you get for your monthly fee?
You should get at least:
- Bureau monitoring (all 3)
- ID Theft Insurance
- Ease of use
- Credit Alerts for: Credit inquires, new accounts, public records, address changes, changes in account information
Bad:
Brand Recognition: Have you ever heard of the brand? Did you see it on TV? Email?
Begin with trusted sources, research the companies, read all terms and conditions
Do you trust the brand? Did you know that Life Lock’s CEO (the guy that puts his SSN on TV) has had his identity stolen more than once? (http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2008/05/lifelock-sued-a/)
I have nothing against LifeLock, just that they can't protect their own CEO
Ugly:
Scammers: ID Monitoring Services do not send out mass emails for the marketing, they use really horrible TV commercials with obnoxious jingles to help sell their brand. Scammers are the ones that spam out emails. Don’t go off an email to get your protection
“We Can Remove ALL Your Personal Details Off The Internet” – This is totally bogus. This is not possible, as no one company has access to every server out there. For instance, if someone asked me to remove something off my Blog, I can tell them “NO” or “Sure, for a fee.” Plus, Google has everything out there cached on one of their 4,000,000 servers… I think Google has more information than the government does… That is for another post!
In conclusion, credit monitoring is very important, and should be one of the expenses that you gladly pay. Since we are all internet junkies, we made it possible for hackers and other criminals to steal something that we never really had to worry about before. Now it is up to us, the very people who put our information on the net, to protect it. Happy New Year Folks!!!
Protect your information, protect yourself; the coffee is brewing people, it is time to wake up!!!
Chock One Up For The Good Guys, Finally!!!
Happy Tuesday my security savvy friends!
Christmas is in 6 days, which means we have only 11 days left for 2011. Around the holidays, it is always nice for us security types to enjoy a win. And on December 16, we got a nice win. A New York City identity theft ring was busted, snagging 55 people.
We are beginning to see more and more theft rings busted by law enforcement these days, but every bust, every investigation, is showing us something new! Looking at the typical identity thief, they are white collar criminals, with maybe a parking ticket or two, but not much else. This bust did not follow the norm when it comes to the demographics of the group. Yes, there was the token white collar guy who probably trained folks on how to carry out the master plan, but there was a unique group mixed in… members from street gangs! Yes indeed, identity theft has turned into such a booming business that even the street gangs are taking it up as a new revenue stream. “Jonathan, what are the meat and potatoes of this case?” I am glad you ask! Over an 18 month investigation, 55 people were arrested for their parts in the crime. What is nice about this bust, other than shedding light on the street gangs movement into the digital crime world, was the use of insiders to assist. Three JP Morgan Chase employees were arrested, some others came from the United Jewish Appeal charity, a car salesman, and a compliance officer from a property management company, are a few of the 55 arrested.
Can you imagine the approach on this one? A blood or a crypt gang member approaches you in a coffee shop, asks to speak to you private, and then tells you about a plan to rip off hundreds of people… Now as you read this, you are probably thinking, “Jonathan, I think you may be embellishing a little!” I wish I could have made that one up. I mean I have a great imagination, and my mental image of the gang member “rollin up” to the Starbucks in his ’64 Impala, getting out, and talking to some suit… Really?
I digress, my apologies! Where was I? Oh yes, according to the reports about this group, I found that they stole “at least” $2 Million from customers!
How the Scam Worked:
These crooks were quite smart in how they did all of this. They would use their inside connections to alter personal details of customers, order new credit cards, have them shipped to new addresses, have those cards intercepted by a criminal that was working with UPS, who would then sell them to another group, who would purchase high dollar items, which would then be fenced by another group… Take a breath… Did you follow all of that?
All joking aside, this group is going to jail, and the security industry learned some new lessons from this. This is a case where the people did nothing wrong, and their private information was stolen. I hope you see how important it is to protect your data!
Thanks for reading!
Protect your information, protect yourself; The coffee is brewing people, it is time to wake up!!!
