Best Person of the Week: Dan Wheeler, ID Theft Victim Wrongly Labeled Sex Offender – For Life
Welcome to the “Best Person of the Week” post from the ITAC blog. As our ever faithful readers know, we like to shine a light on the identity theft “heroes” who are fighting the most noble battle against identity theft. And, our readers know that we like to mix things up a bit, which is what we are doing with this week’s “Best Person” post. How are we mixing things up? We are focusing on a victim who needs all the publicity he can get to clear his good name.
Here’s the gist of it. When Dan Wheeler’s wallet got stolen from his truck 15 years ago, he had no idea that a simple theft would lead to a lifetime of costly and embarrassing misunderstandings. But because the m
Are You a Victim of This Computer Crime?
You have to give cybercriminals credit. When it comes to computer crimes, they can be quite ingenious. Identity thieves are constantly developing new ways to steal your personal information or improving their methods. Such is the case with keystroke logging.
Fortunately for us, the good guys, and unfortunately for them, the bad guys, most of their attempts are detectable. That is, if you know what you’re looking for. Here’s help.
Understanding Keystroke Logging
Perry Kivolowitz, an American computer scientist, authored one of the first keylogger programs in 1983. Perry, a good guy, never intended his program for evil purposes and works today as a speaker on the subject of detecting tampering digital devices.
ATM Security Threats Increase
A recent news report of a skimming scam in Long Island, N.Y., netted thieves more than $200,000 from ATMs at five branches.
Skimming today is far more sophisticated than in the past. Skimmers can include blue tooth and texting technology that send the data to the criminal anywhere. Keypads can be compromised by devices that overlay the exiting pad and transfer the data remotely.
ATM scams and fraud go beyond skimming to crimes that are very physical such as ram raiding to remote malicious software hacks.
Bankinfosecurity.com published “7 Growing Threats to Financial Institutions”.
#1 Skimming; Hardware readily available online that is attached to the face of ATM records user card information and pin codes. In
Best Person of the Week: FBI Special Agent Waldo J. Longa Busts Palm Beach Identity Theft Ring
Bringing down an identity theft ring is no easy thing. Law enforcement often has to go undercover for months at a time, get involved with the criminals — and actually do illegal transactions with money being swapped. This is a very risky proposition that FBI Special Agent Waldo J. Longa, and his team, had no problem with getting down and dirty to stop an identity theft ring in Palm Beach County, Florida.
Between June and July, the ring, comprised of seven low lifes, made 32 separate fake IDs using information stolen from people in Florida, California and other states and showed FBI agents a list of 110 real identities to choose from. A
5 Tips for Avoiding Identity Theft While On Vacation
The threat of identity theft never goes away — even on vacation. This year while taking time to relax, remember to follow these identity theft tips to avoid an unpleasant surprise when you get back home.
Tip #1 — Stop Your Mail
Thieves love your mail. Finding mailboxes stuffed while homeowners are away vacationing is like a dream come true for identity thieves. With the information found in your mailbox from everything from bills to credit card offers, thieves can piece together enough info about you to steal your identity.
Your first step to avoid identity theft while you’re on vacation is to have a neighbor pick up your mail or put a ’stop’ on it at your post office.
Tip #2 — Beware of WiFi Hotspots
Most people take along a laptop while on vacation either to spend some leisurely time surfing the net or to keep in touch with family while they’re away from home.