Date: Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Identity theft: A bigger problem than ever?
Fears have been raised amongst professionals that people are not being careful enough with the amount of data they reveal online.
Investigations have revealed that users of networking websites such as MySpace, Facebook and Bebo are giving out too much personal information online, making it easier for fraudsters to get hold of people’s details. The fear is that with these details so readily available hackers will be able to open bank accounts and take out loans in an individual’s name, saddling them with enormous amounts of debts. Experts such as credit information group Equifax are warning users to restrict the amount of information they include in their personal profiles online, and not reveal their email, location, profession and marital status as many are doing. They wish to dispel the myth that only user’s friends can see this information, and warn that it is not difficult for fraudsters to access it. They also caution individuals against including the names of their children or pets on networking websites, as these are commonly used as passwords on financial websites.
In further investigations it appears that the magnificent new iPhone is not quite as wonderful as was originally thought. Experiments have shown that it is possible to hack in to the iPhone through using a rogue wi-fi connection or a specific website set up. In doing so hackers would have access to all of the phone’s data, including its address book, text messages and voicemail, meaning that it would be easy for fraudsters to get hold of vital information about the user and potentially steal their identity. Independent Security Evaluators (ISE) the company that carried out the experiment is therefore advising owners of the phone to only use a reliable wi-fi connection, and not to open any weblinks in emails.
Experts are hopeful that by people implementing these measures it will reduce the amount of identity fraud that takes place, which in this country alone affected 80 000 people in the UK last year, at a devastating £1.5 billion deficit to the nation’s economy.
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