Criminals are using e-mails to lure victims onto fake Web sites. At these sites, the victims willingly enter their own credit card numbers, bank account numbers and other important information. This is called "Phishing." Spoofed e-mail addresses and Web sites that look identical to financial institutions, Internet service providers, and...
Passed by Congress with overwhelming support, the oddly-named Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act was designed to eliminate "Bankruptcy of convenience." The perceived problem is that many compulsive gamblers, shoppers and drug users often run up huge debts on easily available credit cards with no intention of paying their...
The 2008 predictions are starting to roll in. Advertising Age posted some good ones, including these from the Association of National Advertisers: DIGITAL, DIGITAL, DIGITAL AND PORTABLE TOO: As Steve Ballmer proclaimed at the 2007 ANA Annual Conference, all media ultimately will be created and delivered digitally....
Now that the President's Identity Theft Task Force has provided a strategy for combating identity theft and sent a signal that private and public sectors must now act, how should you go about applying the strategy to your own organization to effectively protect the public you serve from identity theft?...
How prepared do you feel for your retirement? Watch for a new planning tool, coming soon, that will help you see the big picture and make plans for a secure retirement. California Casualty, through its A+ Auto & Home Insurance Program recently introduced Identity Theft Resolution Service, a new benefit...
The most valuable thing on your computer or network is the data you create. Operating systems and applications can always be reinstalled, but user-created data is unique and if lost, may be irreplaceable. Some data is also confidential; not only do you not want to lose it, you don't...
Identity theft is one of the fastest-growing crimes in today's information-laden world. ID thieves usually use this information to access bank or credit accounts, obtain property fraudulently, or disguise the thief's own identity when committing other crimes. Luckily, there are things you can do to avoid becoming one...
Nearly 10 million consumers were victimized by some form of identity theft in 2004 alone. Consumers have reportedly lost over US$5 million, and businesses have lost an estimated $50 billion or more. What is the impact of data theft to your company, your customers, their trust and subsequently your bottom...
The potential for fraud, identity theft and other criminal attacks on a person's personal information is more than enough to keep the person busy making certain his personal information is secure and accurate. But there's more. A common credit industry information reporting and gathering policy requires additional effort on the...
Identity theft is top of mind for many consumers and regulators, and rightfully so. As a result, improving data security and planning for rapid reaction to security breaches are vital goals for virtually every financial institution. As a result of this focus, sections of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act GLBA specifically address...
Banks can learn a lot from casinos about how to protect against identity theft and fraud. This paper describes the Identity technology which was practically invented by casinos, which - among other things - utilize video networks, facial geometry scans and a sophisticated database of unwelcome visitors. They not only...
Companies large and small are offering so-called voluntary benefits to offset insurance costs and foster goodwill between workers and management. Employees like the convenience of buying products like life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability insurance, prepaid legal services, pet health insurance, and identity-theft protection at work: they can pay through...
Regulations are usually imposed by government or by industry group in response to someone tipping the balance. The correct amount of legislation re-creates the needed balance while over legislation can tip it in the other direction. The federal government has also recognized the need to address "consumer mischief." The U.S....
When it comes to identity theft, banks must address the disparity between what they're communicating to the public and consumers' expectations. This is more than a security concern - it's a critical business issue, since identity fraud has the power to undermine a customer's confidence in his or her financial...
Most US insurance industry databases that contain private information about individuals are designed assuming the Social Security Number SSN offers a number of qualities that make it useful as a database key, namely the fact that it is a unique identifier, universal, and secure. In fact, because it is so...
Identity theft is a growing form of fraud that occurs when an unauthorized person uses your personal information, such as your name, Social Security number, bank or credit account numbers, or other identifying information, without lawful authority, to commit financial fraud. In its most damaging form, identity theft can mean...
This paper discusses identity theft, which is a growing financial crime that affects many segments of our society - consumers, merchants, and credit providers, among others - with direct financial losses. In addition, consumers, in particular, are faced with significant indirect costs stemming from the compromise of their credit files....
Lately there has been an increase in identity theft among financial institution customers, and federal requirements, such as regulations under the USA PATRIOT Act, have led banks, credit card companies, and mortgage lenders to seek solutions that improve identity verification and reduce account takeovers. This white paper discusses how financial...
In October 2002, the Center for Democracy and Technology CDT called upon the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators AAMVA to begin an index of cases of internal and external fraud at the state agencies that issue driver's licenses. AAMVA responded that they were interested in such an index, but...
Identity theft occurs when someone steals and misuses an individual's personal data such as their name, address or passport number. Whilst this theft of identity is, by itself, not a crime under UK law, misusing the identity information to fraudulently obtain goods or services. More recently, though, identity theft has...
