Identity Theft Scams

Identity Theft: A Matter of When Not If October 2007 © September 2008 1 1 Tom Di Zinno/NCPD Investigations 336-4473 October 2007 2 2 What is Personal Identifying Information?         Social Security Numbers Driver’s license numbers Address, phone numbers, date of birth Birth Certificate information Mother’s maiden name, other family information Financial account numbers Biometric information on an individual Medical Info October 2007 3 3 Identity Theft: The Classic View  Identity theft occurs when an imposter gains access to personal identifying information (PII) and uses it for financial gain:    October 2007  New lines of credit, loans, and mortgages New accounts, account takeover, checking/debit fraud Tenancy and utilities Medical Billing and Identity 4 4 Identity Theft: The Big Picture  Identity theft also occurs when an imposter gains access to personal identifying information and uses it for: Jobs, employment, contracts  Government accounting issues  Government support services  Avoidance of arrest and criminal records  Medical services  October 2007 5 5 Everyone is Vulnerable    15 million victims a year (1) Identity Theft is a Dual Crime Cost of Identity Theft    American households: $6 billion/year Total fraud loss: $56.6 billion/year Average fraud loss: $6,383/per case October 2007 6 6 Who are these Thieves?  Narcotics users or sellers  Notable connection to Meth Addicts     Organized crime Opportunists Desperate people – Desperate actions Family members or someone close to you 7 7 October 2007 How Thieves Obtain Information          October 2007 Lost/Stolen wallets Mail theft Dumpsters Shoulder surfing Telephone solicitations “Phishing” and scams Lack of computer security / Internet Areas beyond your control Data breaches 8 8 NIGERIAN SCAMS       Mystery Shopper Overpayment Scam Romance Scam Lottery Scam 419 Scam FBI Scam October 2007 9 9 Phishing Scams     Email or Telephone alerts Your account has been terminated/put on hold etc Directs you to a website or phone bank Asks for you to confirm info October 2007 10 10 “Phishing” Email From: Chase Bank [mailto:onlinecustomerservice@chase.com Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2008 1:00 PM Subject: Important : Chase Bank customer service Message Once you log on, you can see your new message and Update Profile in the Secure Update Center. Please fill in the required information. This is required for us to continue to offer you a safe and risk free environment.. 11 11 Thank you for being a valued Chase customer. Pharming Scams        Web Based False Web Site False Search Engine info May be preceeded by Phishing LEARN TO READ URL LOOK FOR ENCRIPTION MODIFY SEARCHS 12 12 October 2007 Mortgage Scams      FICO Score Sites Loan Modification Foreclosure Prevention Foreclosure Prevention Products Brokers October 2007 13 13 Insurance Scams    Free Medical Tests Free Medical Products Cheap Prescriptions October 2007 14 14 SCIMMING       October 2007 Primarily Aimed at your Debit Card Gasoline Retailers Restaurants Retailers Now Taken over by Organized Crime Use Gift/Green Dot Cards 15 15 Put Your Wallet on a Diet     Don’t carry your SSN card with you Minimize number of credit cards Don’t carry children’s SSN’s Minimize pieces of ID which carry SSN 16 16 October 2007 CLEAN OUT YOUR CAR       Id’s Credit Cards Check books Old Receipts Medical Cards Records October 2007 17 17 Protect Your Checkbook        October 2007 Don’t put your Social Security number on your checks Don’t carry blank checks or deposit slips Use specialized pens when writing out checks Shred all unused or old checks Only use checks with merchants you know Use ATM card when possible Monitor your monthly statements carefully 18 18 Debit or Credit? Debit Cards = Your Money    Cash removed immediately from an existing account Limited time to report loss or unauthorized use of card If loss is not reported, greater risk of losing all funds in account Allows consumers to buy goods and services on credit Greater protection from fraud loss if reported within 60 days 19 19 Credit Cards = Their Money   October 2007 Protect Your Mail      Go to a U.S. Post Office when mailing bills or other important documents Use a locked mailbox to send and receive all mail Never leave mail unattended for pickup Monitor your mail for the regular items you receive Don’t utilize a community outbox (i.e. at work) 20 20 October 2007 Shred, Destroy and Opt-Out    Cross-cut shred papers you throw out, especially those with personal identifying information Destroy pre-approved credit offers by shredding Opt out of pre-approved credit card offers (888-5OPT-OUT) 21 21 October 2007 Shoulder Surfing and Telephone Solicitations  Never provide SSN to anyone unless they have a good reason for needing it. Watch for eavesdroppers and ask for privacy when conducting financial business. Never provide personal information during a phone call which you did not initiate.  October 2007 22 22 Safeguard Your Computer  Keep Firewall, Antivirus, and AntiSpyware software updated, automatically is best Popup Blockers  Pop-ups are a perfect place to plant a virus or Trojan program. You never know who wrote the program, or that person’s intent. If you don’t know the supplier, do not allow it to run or install! Be aware of risks of malware 23 23  October 2007  Defend Against Social Networking  Myspace, Facebook, YouTube Keep personal information PERSONAL  Remember these are not your friends  Question profiles – presume they may be false   October 2007 Blogs and Chat Rooms can be used as a way to find out more about you, for criminal 24 purposes 24 On-Line / Internet Experience  Use secure web sites for financial transactions   Paying bills on line Managing financial accounts This includes your user accounts, wireless routers, online accounts, and perhaps even stored spreadsheets that are private 25 25  Implement password protection  October 2007 Peer-to-Peer Safeguards     October 2007 These are programs like Limewire, Kazaa, SoulSeek. Do not store personal or financial information on the same computer you use for file sharing. Check the security preferences for the program you are using. See if you can set it so that only designated folders can be accessed by the file sharing program. Look into encrypting personal and vital information. Some newer computers come with this function already built in. 26 26 Areas Beyond Your Control  Areas beyond your control:  Any database where your personal information is on file  An employee who processes a purchase you make and steals the information  A company that handles your financial data October 2007 27 27 Data Breaches  ITRC Breach Data as of 12/31/07:  446 breaches affecting more than 127 million individual records  ITRC Breach Data as of 10/1/2008:  516 breaches affecting more than 30.3 million records October 2007 28 28 Be Pro-Active Order Credit Reports     Order free credit reports  877-322-8228 Stagger requests Review credit reports carefully Review monthly bank and credit card statements or review account transactions online 29 29 October 2007 Extra Precaution Place a Credit Freeze  Consider the possibility of placing a credit freeze on your credit file  Assist elderly family members in placing them on their credit files  See How to “Freeze” Your Credit Files: www.oispp.ca.gov/consumer_privacy/con sumer/documents/pdf/cis10securityfreeze. pdf 30 30 October 2007 If a Victim, First Steps      Place a “Fraud Alert” on your credit reports Close Affected Accounts File a Police Report Report the crime to the Federal Trade Commission Contact the ITRC October 2007 31 31 Negative Trends  San Diego’s # 1 crime: Vehicle break ins  Stealing items which can be used to commit identity theft     October 2007 Data on the move – laptops or flash drives Insider theft - by employees or others Scams Misuse of information -children and the deceased 32 32 Predictions  Negative: More cases linked to Meth use/dealing Large scale ID brokering worldwide More sophisticated attacks and development of identity theft rings Younger thieves  Positive: New policing and legislative solutions 33 33 October 2007 The Bottom Line The only successful way to fight identity theft will be with a team approach. Each of us has to be more vigilent Businesses, law enforcement, governmental agencies, legislators and consumers must combine their efforts to stem the growth of identity theft. October 2007 34 34 Questions October 2007 35 35