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Posts tagged "“Identity Theft"
Identity thieves prey on those who are most vulnerable. You may be in the process of cleaning up your lives, but predators running disaster scams may want to clean up on you by stealing your valuable private information.
As we learned from Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy, one of the most despicable side effects of a natural disaster is the massive increase in reported cases of identity theft in the affected areas. Thieves take advantage of those who are vulnerable, and those who have suffered flooding, wind damage and the effects of the storm are more vulnerable than ever. Imagine how devastating it would it be to apply for a line of credit to help your family recover from the storm only to find out that your entire net worth now belongs to a thief.
Here are some of the highest priority actions for victims of Hurricane Harvey to take once they have taken care of their immediate safety needs.
Posted in Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "disaster fraud", "disaster scams", "Identity Theft, disaster relief, hurricane, identity theft expert, John Sileo, preying on victims, protection after disaster, Sileo
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How to Protect Your Lost Wallet or Purse against Identity Theft
In a panic that your lost wallet or stolen purse might lead to identity theft? Take a deep breath and then take the First 5 Steps to Stop ID theft. First, you need to understand that a lost wallet or purse is one of the most concentrated sources of identifying documents. For now, assume that your lost or stolen wallet or purse will be used to exploit your identity. Sometimes, even when your missing item shows up unexpectedly, the damage has already been done by a clever thief who is simply returning your valuables so that you don’t suspect further theft and shut down your accounts. Don’t take any changes. Instead, take these first five steps (adapted from my Identity Theft Recovery Guide):
Posted in Burning Questions (Video), Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, I lost my wallet, Identity theft recovery, Identity Theft Victim, Lost Purse, Lost Wallet, My purse was stolen, Stolen Purse, Stolen Wallet
It’s no surprise that identity theft once again tops the “Dirty Dozen” tax scams put forth by the IRS for 2014. They warn that if an identity thief has access to your personal information, such as your name, Social Security number or other identifying information, he or she may use it to fraudulently file a tax return and claim a refund in your name. Think of the implications for the 110 million victims of the recent Target data breach as well as victims of the hundreds of other breaches at other retailers, universities, healthcare providers, government agencies and so on.
KrebsOnSecurity reports that the information from the Target breach alone has reportedly flooded underground black markets and cards are being sold from around $20 to more than $100 each. This data is being sold in hundreds of online “stores” advertised in cybercrime forums. A fraud analyst at a major bank was able to buy a portion of the bank’s accounts from such a store.
Posted in Fraud Detection & Prevention, Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, “IRS dirty dozen”, “tax scams”, Data Breach, Expert, identity theft expert, John Sileo, Online Reputation, Sileo, Speaker
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vwt8B5tpLMI&rel=0]
Today marks the start of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). As with any new, massive, government-sponsored program, scammers and identity thieves will try to take advantage of the public’s confusion and unfamiliarity with the new Health Exchanges (which we’re calling Obamacare Identity Theft).
Posted in Burning Questions (Video), Identity Theft Prevention, Video Tips by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, Affordable Care Act, Healthcare ID Theft, id theft, identity theft expert, John Sileo, medical identity theft, Obamacare, Sileo
Universities perfect learning environment for data security
Higher Ed Organizations are among the highest risk groups to become victims of identity theft and data breach. Because students are relative “beginners” when it comes to personal finances, because university environments are predicated on trust and credibility, and because of the recent progress towards a mobile-centric, social-networking-dominated campus, higher education’s digital footprint is constantly exposed to manipulation.
“The most engaging speaker I’ve ever heard – period.” Debbie Bumpous, NSU Chief Information Technology Officer speaking about John Sileo
“John Sileo was the secret sauce in launching our cyber security awareness program” – University of Massachusetts Director of IT
Posted in Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Higher Education", "Identity Theft, Data Breach, data privacy expert, data security, Data Security Expert, identity theft expert, John Sileo, Privacy, Universities, University
Online reputation services have a special responsibility to keep clients safe. How can you protect yourself when the very company you rely on is breached?
Would you trust a site with your personal information after it suffered a breach? What if that site’s sole purpose is to protect your reputation?
Reputation.com helps its members maintain a reputable online profile, but the site’s own profile was damaged by a recent data breach that led to the exposure of customer information. Although no Social Security numbers or financial information was lost,
names, email addresses, and physical addresses were exposed. It’s been reported that some dates of birth, phone numbers, and occupational information were also lost. A “small minority” of customer accounts had hashed and salted passwords stolen.
‘Hashing’ passwords is the process of using algorithms to change customers’ passwords to a unique data string. The ‘salt’ adds more characters to produce a unique data fingerprint. The company has notified all customers of the breach and reset passwords to protect them. But
Reputation.com is not alone in being hacked recently. LivingSocial, a daily-deal website, was breached, affecting 50 million customers.
Maintaining our online reputation is important to us and the internet, social media and mobile technology are great tools that give us a competitive advantage. However, we cannot ever take our
online privacy for granted. Three tips to keep you ahead of identity theft are:
- Use a password protection program that makes it easy to use highly-encrypted passwords
Posted in Digital Reputation & Trust by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, Data Breach, online privacy, Online Reputation
How to Stop Check Fraud and Check Washing
Check washing, a highly common form of check fraud, is the practice of removing legitimate check information, especially the “Pay To” name and the amount, and replacing it with data beneficial to the criminal (his own name or a larger amount) through chemical or electronic means. One of the many ways to protect yourself against check fraud is so important that it deserves its very own article.
A foolproof way to protect your checks from being altered, whether by washing or by electronic means, is to use security checks offered by most companies.
Here are some of the features to look for when you’re purchasing High Security Checks. These features will safeguard you not only against check washing, but other high tech forms of check fraud as well:
- Safety security paper (visible and invisible fluorescent fibers, chemical-sensitive)
Posted in Fraud Detection & Prevention, Identity Theft Prevention, Product Endorsements by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, "prevention of identity theft", “How to Prevent Identity Theft”, “Prevent Identity Theft”, Check Washing, Chemical check washing, Fraud, Hologram, identity theft expert, Identity Theft Prevention, Identity Theft Speaker, Identity Theft Statistics, John Sileo, Security Check Features, Security Checks, Security Pen, Watermark
Identity Thief Bloopers
When a waitress says, “Hi, I’m Brianna and I’ll be taking care of you today,” you don’t expect the customer to be thinking, “What a coincidence, my fake name is Brianna.” And you certainly don’t expect said customer to be so bold, or idiotic, as to buy a drink using a fake ID belonging to the very same Brianna she’d stolen it from a week before.
As they say at Applebee’s, welcome to the neighborhood – at least the identity theft neighborhood.
According to a recent 9News story, Brianna Priddy, an Applebee’s waitress in Lakewood, CO was out with friends when her wallet was stolen. Enter the crime-challenged suspect who stole Priddy’s wallet containing cash, credit cards and her driver’s license. The suspect then used the license to cash hundreds of dollars of fraudulent checks, creating a financial and administrative nightmare for Priddy.
Posted in Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, Darwin Awards, identity theft expert, Identity Theft Stories, Identity Thief, John Sileo, Stupid Thieves
Do you trust LifeLock to help protect your identity? The answer to that question can be just as crucial as the measures you take to monitor your identity on your own.
With online theft as active as it is, many are trying to cash in by offering protection against hackers. But you’ve got to have a keen eye to pick the ones that are actually going to help you out. LifeLock is one of the most widely-seen internet security companies in the country – but then again, LifeLock has a record that makes its viability somewhat questionable.
Oakland news station KTVU recently reported the local story of a woman whose identity was stolen after signing up with LifeLock. An outside source managed to apply for a loan in her name without so much as an alert going to the woman in question. I’m sure that person is going to be more cautious with the identity theft monitoring service they choose next time.
Posted in Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Identity Theft, data security, digital security, id theft services, Identity Theft Services
