Recent Victim of Identity Theft

June 21, 2005

Recent Victim of Identity Theft, You May be Next

http://www.mercola.com/2005/jun/21/identity_theft.htm

- Folks, you are at risk of having your credit compromised. This weekend MasterCard had the largest reported security breach of stolen consumer data ever and nearly 40 MILLION credit card accounts are affected.

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By Dr. Mercola:

I Was a Recent Victim of Identity Theft, You May be Next You credit is becoming increasingly exposed to security breaches. This past Friday, MasterCard International reported that more than 40 million credit card accounts of all brands might have been exposed to fraud through a computer security breach -- the largest case of stolen consumer data to date.

The breach, according to MasterCard, was traced to Atlanta-based CardSystems Solutions -- which processes credit card and other payments for banks and merchants -- due to an unusual pattern of fraudulent transactions. (An FBI spokeswoman would not confirm the intrusion was the result of Internet hacking.)

Yet despite the disturbing news, MasterCard told consumers only a small fraction of the 13.9 million MasterCard accounts (68,000) exposed to the possible fraud were considered high risk.

So what should "high-risk" cardholders do to protect their accounts? According to a MasterCard spokeswoman, victims should examine their credit card and debit card accounts more closely but should not worry about identity theft, as Social Security numbers, dates of birth and other information of the like are not stored on a customer's credit card.

But while victims of this colossal security breach may have side-stepped identity theft this time, many other consumers haven't been so lucky ...

Not Just MasterCard

CitiFinancial, the consumer finance subsidiary of Citigroup, announced that a box of computer tapes containing information on 3.9 million customers was lost by United Parcel Service (U.P.S.) while in transit to a credit reporting agency.

Citigroup executives explained the tapes were picked up by U.P.S. on May 2 and have not been seen since. However, according to CitiFinancial, there is no indication the tapes were stolen or that any of the information on them has been tampered with.

What was on the tapes? Everything -- specifically, the tapes contained: names, addresses, account numbers, Social Security numbers, payment histories and other details on small personal loans of customers through CitiFinancial's network of more than 1,800 lending branches, or through retailers whose product financing was handled by CitiFinancial's retail services division.

Tip of the Iceberg

Along with MasterCard, the incident with CitiFinancial is just an addition to a series of major security breaches that have been reported across the country. Other companies with thousands of people whose data may have been compromised include:

The media giant Time Warner (600,000 people)

Data brokers like ChoicePoint (145,000) and LexisNexis (310,000)

Financial institutions like Bank of America (up to 1.2 million)

Universities like Boston College and Tufts and the University of California, Berkeley

What concerns authorities most, however, is that Social Security numbers, when paired with a consumer's name, address and date of birth, can be used by villains to steal someone's identity.

Worse, when a person's data gets downloaded by a thief, the Internet makes it easier for criminals to buy and sell it around the world -- from gangs in Nigeria and Eastern Europe to boiler rooms in California.

And Speaking of California ...

California law requires state government agencies, companies and nonprofit organizations to notify California customers if their personal information in their data files has been tampered with. And with continual reports of data loss, at least five other states (Arkansas, North Dakota, Georgia, Montana and Washington) have passed similar notification laws; dozens of additional states are considering similar laws.

As for CitiFinancial, all 3.9 million victims will receive a letter advising them of the loss and an offer for 90 days of free enrollment in a credit-monitoring service.

How to Reduce Your Odds of Becoming Victim to Identity Theft

In order to prevent becoming a victim of identity theft, you should:

Guard your data: Offer a driver's license or other ID instead of a Social Security number. Wallets should not contain your vital IDs.

Erase their trail: Send documents on a trip through the crosscut shredder.

Learn not to share: Ask financial firms not to trade personal data.

Don't be a phish: Never click on a hot link in an e-mail that looks like it came from a bank, brokerage or online retailer and never respond with personal information.

Stand on watch: As of September 1, 2005, everyone in the United States will be entitled to one free credit report a year.

New York Times June 18, 2005 (Registration Required)

New York Times June 7, 2005

MONEY Magazine June 7, 2005

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

It seems to be now that a week does not go by in which identity theft isn't a headline. Thus, there is a strong possibility that you could have a run-in with identity theft. Even with my strong passion for tech and understanding of computer security, I had my identity ripped off a week ago.

I thought you would find value by learning from my experience and it might help you avoid future grief.

As use of the Internet continues to grow, the importance of security grows right along with it. All of us are at an increased risk of thieves who want to steal our identities so they can defraud merchants and swipe items like computers and high-end electronics without a gun.

I recently decided to clean out my attic and basement and finally decided to unload many unwanted items on eBay. So I had many e-mails from eBay.

Since I typically get over 200 e-mails a day -- and sometimes as many as 250 -- in my haste to keep my inbox clean, I was forwarding all eBay-related e-mails to my girlfriend, who was managing the eBay sales.

Inadvertently, I forwarded her an eBay phishing e-mail and she filled it out and listed my passwords, account information and VISA card number. I found out about the scam when they asked her many personal questions she couldn't answer, so she forwarded it back to me to complete. As soon as I looked at the e-mail the next day, I instantly realized it was a scam and immediately closed my VISA account.

Fortunately, I had previously placed a security alert with the three major credit bureaus. Good thing I did: These scammers had tried to open a Dell credit account and purchase computer equipment, but they couldn't do it due to that security alert I put in place.

As far as I can determine, the problem occurs when people do not realize they have given away this information inappropriately and don't initiate the security alert. Once people have that security alert in place, there is very little scammers can do.

There are two types of security alerts you can use: 12-weeks and a seven-year. I was in week 10 of a 12-week alert, but have since converted mine to a seven-year alert to ensure the scammers don't get anything. It seems to be a relatively painless process, and the only inconvenience is the credit bureaus will phone you personally to make sure the person checking your credit status is authorized.

Seems to be a reasonable approach and something many of you may want to consider. Besides, with all these personal files being lost or stolen, who knows when someone may try to steal your identity like they did to me last weekend.

Once my eyes were opened to identity theft I happened to see a great review on CNN, and I would encourage you to carefully review it.