“You may think that you are anonymous as you browse websites, but pieces of information about you are always left behind. You can reduce the amount of information revealed about you by visiting legitimate sites, checking privacy policies, and minimizing the amount of personal information you provide.”
“File sharing involves using technology that allows internet users to share files that are housed on their individual computers. Peer-to-peer (P2P) applications, such as those used to share music files, are some of the most common forms of file-sharing technology. However, P2P applications introduce security risks that may put your information or your computer in jeopardy.
File-sharing technology is a popular way for users to exchange, or “share,” files. However, using this technology makes you susceptible to risks such as infection, attack, or exposure of personal information.”
This is just a friendly reminder for users of Internet Explorer to stay up to date with updates offered by Microsoft. This will help ensure the safest browsing experience possible with Internet Explorer.
“Microsoft issued an emergency security update on Tuesday to plug 10 holes in Internet Explorer, including a critical vulnerability that has been exploited in attacks in the wild.”
Apr
5
It goes without saying that all the latest and greatest security means next to nothing if your password is easily hacked. Life hacker has an article explaining how CEO, internet standards expert and blogger John Pozadzides would hack your passwords. His intent is to help you understand the vulnerabilities of weak passwords and help you make more secure selections.
NEW YORK (3/9/10)–Cybercrooks or eCrime syndicates are expanding the base of the brands they exploit for online fraud far beyond major financial institutions and online merchants, said the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWP) in its fourth quarter Phishing Activity Trends Report.
Now they’re targeting the big phish hoping to hook key individuals in corporations and institutions.
Securing Wireless Networks
Wireless networks are becoming increasingly popular, but they introduce additional security risks. If you have a wireless network, make sure to take appropriate precautions to protect your information.
“Researchers at NetWitness uncovered a 75,000-strong botnet that infected companies around the world. Among its targets – login credentials for Facebook, Yahoo and other sites. According to security pros, the botnet is part of a growing trend to use social networking sites as a stepping stone to steal valuable financial data.”
The FTC posted a new release about a new scam threatening people seeking employment…
“It’s hard to believe someone would steal money from a person looking for a job. But unfortunately, no matter how bad the situation, scammers see opportunity. Many people looking for work have been ripped off by scam artists who promise a job, access to special job listings, interviews, or a way to make a big income working from home – that is, if they just pay a fee or turn over their credit or debit card information. In the end, they’re left with no job…and some are robbed of hundreds of dollars.
That’s why the Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, produced a new video warning consumers: “Don’t Pay for a Promise.” The video, which you can find at ftc.gov/jobscams features details on how consumers can spot and steer clear of job scammers, and how to report rip-offs to the FTC. Also, the FTC and its partners across the country today announced a law enforcement sweep http://ftc.gov/opa/2010/02/bottomdollar.shtm cracking down on job and work-at-home scams.”
For several consecutive years following the FTC’s original finding on “America’s fastest growing white collar crime” Javelin Strategy & Research reported that unauthorized transactions committed in another person’s name were on the wane. Then for the last two years they found it’s up sharply again–so what’s up? Unemployment and other indicators of a tough economic environment are what’s up, and fraud seems to be correlated. No one can prove such connections, but Javelin charted GNP growth against the rise and fall of ID fraud, and the two opposite curves look like these two symbols, except turned sideways: )(
Identity fraud is a combination of two crimes: theft, followed by transactional misuse of the data. Unquestionably, there are highly-sophisticated “professionals” operating from sometimes half a world away using the latest advanced technology, and there are also desperate perpetrators using whatever information they stumble across. Javelin’s separate studies (such as the Safety Scorecards) show that industry systems are actually improving a great deal (case: large FIs’ Prevention scores jumped from 51% to 79% last year, a record increase), but in these tough times it seems criminals are evolving fast too.
Desperate times make for desperate measures, and in 2009 a record 11.1million adults were victimized by ID Fraud in the US.
Identity Fraud Continues to Rise – New Accounts Fraud Drives Increase;
Consumer Costs at an All‐Time Low
ID Fraud continued to rise in 2009, with Javelin finding there are more victims than in any period since the survey began in 2003. Driving that increase was new accounts fraud, which showed longer periods of misuse and detection and therefore more dollar losses associated with it than any other type of fraud. Meanwhile the consumer costs, the dollar amounts the victim pays on average out-of-pocket, reached an all time low. The Javelin 2010 Identity Fraud Survey Report provides a detailed, comprehensive analysis of identity fraud in the United States in order to help consumers and businesses better understand the effectiveness of methods used for its prevention, detection and resolution. Read the article