ID Theft Articles and Newsletters

January 2012 - Be Aware of Taxpayer ID Theft in 2012

"As I received my W-2 last week, along with millions of people throughout the United States in accordance with the federally-mandated January 31st deadline, it reminded me of how the IRS has created a Taxpayer Guide to Identity Theft (View the guide here)."

Continue reading...

December 2011 - Identity Theft Trends You Need to Know in 2012

"Nearly five years ago, I wrote an article published in the Arizona Bankers Magazine on how "identity theft has become so lucrative that criminals have turned away from individual targets and are focused on obtaining complete files of personal information from business entities.""

Continue reading...

November 2011 - ID Theft and Data Breach in the News

"According to the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (https://www.privacyrights.org/data-breach/new), there were 497 data breach events totaling just over 30 million records through November 26 of this year."

Continue reading...

October 2011 - October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month and October 16th-22nd is National Protect Your ID Week

"Did you know that the month of October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month and that October 16th through the 22nd, 2011 is National Protect Your ID Week?"

Continue reading...

September 2011 - Medical Identity Theft - A Hackers New Best Friend

"According to a new research report from accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) (see article here), "medical identify theft is the fastest-growing form of identity theft, affecting 1.42 million Americans in 2010 and costing more than $28 billion.""

Continue reading...

August 2011 - Back To School Safety Needs to Include Internet Security and Safety Tips

"As students, parents and teachers begin the new school year, a common topic of discussion is school safety and school safety tips."

Continue reading...

July 2011 - Your 2011 Summer Vacation Threat: RFID Fraud

"Last month I wrote about how you need to increase your awareness of credit/debit card skimming – especially when you are traveling away from home during summer vacation."

Continue reading...

June 2011 - Your 2011 Summer Vacation Threat: Credit/Debit Card Skimming and RFID Fraud – Part I

"In just the last six weeks, a breathtaking number of data breach events have taken place including some of the most well-known corporate names in the United States including Anthem Blue Cross, Bank of America, Citigroup, Delta Dental, Lexis-Nexis, Michaels Stores, Regions Bank, Sony, Sun Trust Bank, and the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission)."

Continue reading...

May 2011 - How to Protect Yourself from ID Theft and Job Search Scams

"Just two months ago (in my March 2011 ID Theft article), I reported on how "imposter scams" by ID Theft criminals pretend to act as family, friends, businesses, charities, or government agencies, in an attempt to defraud consumers."

Continue reading...

April 2011 - Did You Receive an Epsilon Data Breach Notification Letter?

"On April 15, the Obama administration released the final version of the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cybersapce or NSTIC (read the article here)."

Continue reading...

March 2011 - ID Theft is The Number One Consumer Complaint 11 Years in A Row

"The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released its annual Consumer Sentinel Network (CSN) report on March 8th (please read here) where the list of top consumer complaints showed that identity theft was the number one consumer complaint in the United States for the 11th consecutive year."

Continue reading...

February 2011 - ID Theft, Your 2011 Taxes and Your Tax Preparation Service Provider

"According to a January 12, 2011 Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (PRC) posting on "Tax Season Tips to Protect Your Privacy" – your information return form is a primary target for identity theft thieves who are committed to stealing your sensitive information including your social security number."

Continue reading...

January 2011 - ID Theft and the Military

"According to the nonprofit Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), there were 662 data breach events in 2010 (click here to read the article)."

Continue reading...

December 2010 - Everyone Knows About Credit Scores; but Do You Know About Consumer Scores?

"I have always viewed the end of each year as an opportunity to create and execute new plans and dreams to support my family, workplace and community."

Continue reading...

November 2010 - ID Theft Protection Tips for Your 2010 Holiday Season

"The Holiday Season is prime time for deceit by identity theft criminals looking to garner your personal information - and 2010 is no different. That said, I have listed my Top 15 ID Theft Protection Tips including action items which you can do yourself for free."

Continue reading...

October 2010 - How to Protect Your Personal Information from the Internet and Database Marketing

"This morning (October 18, 2010) I read an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal (please see here) on how Facebook users' personal information via popular applications (or "apps") was being transmitted to advertising and Internet tracking companies."

Continue reading...

September 2010 - Protect Your Identity Week and National Cybersecurity Awareness Month are in October

"If you are like me, you have probably read, heard about and/or participated in some type of industry group or national cause through the years that supports an annual "national theme of the month" promotion."

Continue reading...

August 2010 - What You Need to Know About Social Media and ID Theft in the New School Year

"As the 2010-11 school year begins for middle school, high school and college students throughout the United States – parents, teachers and students need to know and/or be reminded of the risks related to social media."

Continue reading...

July 2010 - The Internet was Created For Convenience and Reliability, Not ID Theft and Data Breach Events

"The Internet was created for convenience and reliability, NOT your security where ID Theft and Data Breach events have become commonplace in almost every business, across every industry group."

Continue reading...

June 2010 - Your Personal Privacy - Are You in Control?

"Your personal privacy is not so private anymore based on the use of rapidly changing technology, social media, and laws - which makes all of our information more and more available - and more and more vulnerable."

Continue reading...

May 2010 - ID Theft and Fraud in the News... Last Week, This Week and Next Week

"On occasion, most individuals who write a regularly scheduled column or news article have what is called "writers block." For example, I write a monthly ID Theft article for our business clients that have a combined 4 million employees and customers."

Continue reading...

April 2010 - Preventing Senior ID Theft and Financial Fraud

"The senior population in the United States is a growing segment in our society which is living longer and as a result is at risk of Senior ID Theft and Financial Fraud."

Continue reading...

March 2010 - Fast Facts on the IRS and Cyber Tax Day

"According to the IRS (http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=217790,00.html), most taxpayers and tax preparers will take advantage of the IRS e-file to file federal tax returns. At the same time, the IRS e-file will also be used as a resource to request for an extension to file a tax return."

Continue reading...

February 2010 - Data Breach Events and ID Theft Continue to Rise

"According to a newly released Javelin Strategy & Research 2010 Identity Fraud Survey Report (http://www.javelinstrategy.com/), the number of identity fraud victims in the United States has jumped by 12 percent to 11.1 million adults - the highest increase to-date since the survey started in 2003 - while the total overall fraud amount increased by 12.5 percent to $54 billion."

Continue reading...

January 2010 - Password 101 and a New Year’s Resolution: Making Sure Your Password is Difficult to Break

"According to Wikipedia, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Password_strength), the definition of password strength is: "a measure of the effectiveness of a password in resisting guessing and brute-force attacks.""

Continue reading...

December 2009 - 2010 Advice: Know Program Details and Exclusions of any ID Theft Program Before You Buy

"My primary objective in writing my last consumer ID Theft newsletter article in 2009 is to communicate the premise that NO ONE COMPANY can PREVENT you (or any family member) from EVER becoming a victim of ID Theft."

Continue reading...

November 2009 - Consumer Alert: Protect your Identity, Wallets, On-line Purchases, Cars, and Luggage from Holiday Thieves

"According to new research conducted by Merchants Information Solutions, Inc, protecting your identity and the identity of family members is the number one consumer concern with the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and year-end Holiday events taking place.

Based on a consumer survey of 200 teenagers and adults ranging in ages from 16 to 83 years old, the Top five consumer concerns relating to Holiday thieves include the following"

Continue reading...

October 2009 - Identity Theft versus Identity Fraud

"Since 2005, I have written numerous articles about identity theft and information security with the purpose of educating individual consumers about consumer risk management and educating businesses about information security and data breach risk management."

Continue reading...

September 2009 - Merchants Warns of 2010 Census and Small Business ID Theft Scams

"In the almost three years I have written a monthly newsletter article on the topics of ID Theft, Consumer Risk Management and Data Breach events, I have never mentioned my company (Merchants Information Solutions, Inc.) which is a leading ID Theft Management Services and Background Screening company in the United States or the leadership of our company in any way – as this newsletter is designed to support ID Theft education and consumer risk management."

Continue reading...

August 2009 - Students and ID Theft: How to Protect Their Personal Information

"As the end of August brings us closer to Labor Day – which is a national holiday in honor of working people – I began to think about the beginning of the school year for my two daughters."

Continue reading...

July 2009 - Is your Doctor, Dentist, Home & Auto Insurance Agent (and other creditor relationships) prepared for the new FTC Red Flags Rule?

"While you and your family, as individual consumers are not required to be very familiar with Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Red Flags Rule (which goes into affect on November 1, 2009), you should be responsible with respect to knowing whether or not the companies and organizations that you have a “creditor” relationship with are prepared and in compliance with the new Red Flags Rule."

Continue reading...

June 2009 - Protecting Yourself from ID Theft While on Summer Vacation

"Now that June 21st – which is known as the Summer Solstice, longest day of the year, the first day of summer, and Father’s day (when the third Sunday in June falls on the 21st day) – has arrived, it is a good time to think about the continuing trend and challenge of identity theft when most families in the United States are on summer vacation."

Continue reading...

May 2009 - Non-Financial ID Theft is a Trend You Need to Know About

"According to the February 2009 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Consumer Sentinel Report (see http://www.ftc.gov/sentinel/ for more information), ID Theft and fraud related events are much more than a financial event – where only 35 percent of ID Theft is related to your credit card, debit card, checking account, savings account, auto loan, personal loan, etc."

Continue reading...

April 2009 - ID Theft and Safeguarding Your Child's Identity

"In the February 2009 Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Consumer Sentinel Report – which reported on identity theft and fraud complaints for the year 2008 (see click here to read the full report) -- most parents should know that seven percent of children (19 years old and younger) are at risk of having their social security numbers stolen and their identities compromised."

Continue reading...

March 2009 - Be Alert to ID Theft When Filing Your 2009 Taxes

"According to the February 2009 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Consumer Sentinel Report (see http://www.ftc.gov/sentinel/ for more information), government documents/benefits fraud is now the second most common reported type of identity theft after credit card fraud. Fraudulent tax return-related identity theft, a subtype of government documents/benefits fraud, has increased nearly six percentage points since 2006!"

Continue reading...

February 2009 - ID Theft and Your Online Job Search: Things you should know

"Based on the current economic climate combined with unscrupulous cyber criminals, online jobseekers need to be cautious when using employment websites and even more cautious in screening for fraudulent job listings."

Continue reading...

January 2009 - Consumer Risk Management: Protecting You and Your Family from ID Theft in 2009

"Whenever I speak or write about ID Theft trends and scams, I talk about how targeted attacks from professional thieves, organized crime, current and former employees, and/or current and former vendors break through internal controls to steal and sell sensitive employee and customer information."

Continue reading...

December 2008 - Lesson Learned in 2008: No One Can Protect Your Information From Being Lost or Stolen

"Question: What does a federal government agency (FEMA), state government agencies (New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Louisiana Department of Revenue, Central California Appellate Program, Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation), the university and college system (Ohio University, University of North Carolina, Austin Peay State University, Oregon Health & Science University, Cal Poly Pomona), the medical industry (Cedars-Sinai Medical Center), the auto dealership industry (Bill Dube Ford/Toyota), the movie theater industry (Zyacorp Entertainment Cinemagic Stadium), and the computer industry (Hewlett-Packard/Symantec) all have in common?"

Continue reading...

August 2008 - Protect Your Identity Through Your Credit, Medical, and Drivers License Reports

"According to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACT Act), every consumer in the United States – since September 1, 2005 – has had access to their free credit files disclosure or credit reports from www.annualcreditreport.com."

Continue reading...

May 2008 - Schools Out , Summer Vacation Is In and ID Theft Risks Increase

"Now that the school year has either ended or is ending for most families across the United States, it might be a good time to think about the growing trend of identity theft."

Continue reading...

March 2008 - ID Theft and Tax Preparation; Did You Know?

"As I was preparing to write this month’s column on identity theft and tax preparation, it occurred to me that everyone could learn something from three personal and real life stories that made me scratch my head and say, "Huh!""

Continue reading...

December 2007 - Embrace the New Year and Your Financial Health by Protecting Your Identity in 2008

"According to Wikipedia (the free encyclopedia), " a New Year’s resolution is a commitment that an individual makes to project a habit, often a lifestyle change that is generally interpreted as advantageous. The name comes from the fact that these commitments normally go into effect on New Year’s Day and remain until the set goal has been achieved, although many resolutions go unachieved and are often broken fairly shortly after they are set.""

Continue reading...

October 2007 - Synthetic Identity Fraud: A Growing Trend In ID Theft

"Most consumers think of identity theft as a financial related event including their credit and debit cards, checking and savings accounts, and/or their personal, student, auto or home loans."

Continue reading...

August 2007 - A New School Year Brings More Opportunities for ID Theft

"As the school year begins in many areas of the country during the next few weeks, I was reminded of how children can become victims of identity theft – as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has estimated that about 400,000 children have their identities stolen each year."

Continue reading...

June 2007 - ID Theft Is Bigger Than The Headlines

"Since February 2005 – when the watershed ChoicePoints data breach event took place – there have been over 450 data breaches (that we know of) affecting over 140 million records containing sensitive customer and employee information."

Continue reading...

March 2007 - The Difference Between ID Theft Insurance and an ID Theft Program

"There have been some recent news articles questioning why an individual consumer would or should purchase an identity theft insurance policy."

Continue reading...

December 2006 - A Resolution You'll Want To Keep

"If you’re like me, then you know how the end of each year brings out the best intentions in all of us. Every year, I take inventory of the past 12 months, plan how I’m going to better my life and then charge forward with some ironclad New Year’s resolutions. No matter how hard I try, however, a few of my resolutions from last year always seem to end up on this year’s list."

Continue reading...

October 2006 - A New Perspective On Identity Theft

"While I knew identity (ID) theft could happen to me, I always believed that my odds of becoming a victim were small; after all, helping businesses and consumers protect themselves from ID theft is my business. When both my wife and I became victims of ID theft on three separate occasions in the last three years, however, I came to the conclusion that our personal information and the information of every consumer is not as secure as we may think."

Continue reading...

July 2006 - Eliminating the Threat of Identity Theft? A Modern Fairy Tale

"Identity theft is a serious crime with damaging consequences: loss of credit, problems obtaining a loan, renting an apartment, constant calls from bill collectors… the list goes on. Victims of identity theft often spend more than 100 hours making phone calls and filing documents in an effort to repair the damage."

Continue reading...