August 2011 News Archive

August 31, 2011

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Court to hear arguments in warrantless wiretapping cases

Computerworld - The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit will begin hearing arguments on Wednesday on two related lawsuits involving the constitutionality and the legality of warrantless wiretaps of phone and email conversations of U.S. citizens by the government. ...read full article

Metairie woman pleads guilty to FEMA fraud

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A 39-year-old Metairie woman has pleaded guilty to federal charges of theft of government funds, possession of stolen mail and identity theft. ...read full article

How a Special Ops impersonator duped the FBI for a decade

William Hillar fraudulently posed as a US Army Special Forces veteran and terrorism expert for 12 years, winning lucrative contracts and duping, among others, the FBI. ...read full article

Saline man who faced 13 identity theft charges and skipped out on bail sentenced to probation, boot camp

A Saline man who fled to New York after being arrested on a number of fraud charges in June was sentenced to 3 years of probation and boot camp on Monday. ...read full article

Man arrested in prescription theft

Police say an Arkansas man used the names of identity-theft victims to call in fake prescriptions to Quad-City pharmacies. ...read full article

Betty Jefferson to be sentenced Wednesday

NEW ORLEANS -- Convicted former assessor Betty Jefferson is set to learn her prison sentence Wednesday. ...read full article

How to prevent elder abuse

There are a number of steps elderly Floridians and those who care about them can take to avoid becoming victims of abuse, scams, identity theft and financial exploitation, according to information from the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. ...read full article

Cedar Rapids woman imprisoned for fraud, ID theft

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A 33-year-old Cedar Rapids woman has been given 52 months in federal prison for fraud and identity theft. ...read full article

Akamai employee tried to sell secrets to Israel

A staffer in the finance department tried to sell client information, contracts and even an employee list

IDG News Service - A 43-year-old former Akamai employee has pleaded guilty to espionage charges after offering to hand over confidential information about the Web acceleration company to an agent posing as an Israeli consular official in Boston. ...read full article

Flood of WikiLeaks cables includes identities of dozens of informants

(CNN) -- A torrent of leaked U.S. diplomatic cables obtained by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks has been published in the last few days, with at least 170 of them naming sources whose identity was meant to be protected, according to an analysis of the documents by CNN. ...read full article

August 30, 2011

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No, Gadhafi's wife doesn't really want to give you money

Despite what an email you may have received claims, Safia Gadhafi — the wife of Col. Moammar Gadhafi — does not want to give you several tons of gold (or several million dollars, for that matter). She — or whoever is posing as her — does however want to take some of your hard-earned cash. ...read full article

Death & Taxes & Identity Theft

Dealing with the death of your spouse is tough. But when you are attempting to file that final joint return and IRS notifies you that someone else has already filed using your spouse’s name and social security number, it creates a rippling of emotions that are hard to describe. For the second time this year I have had to explain to a client that their electronically filed personal tax return could not be processed by IRS because their deceased spouse’s social security number had been used on an earlier filed return. ...read full article

Police look for schemers who stole, cashed checks

NDY SPRINGS, Ga. -- Police in half a dozen metro Atlanta communities are investigating an elaborate case of identity fraud that involved people passing more than $60,000 in bad checks. ...read full article

Police hunting for Facebook cyberbully

BRIGHTON - A high school employee and her daughter have been the target of explicit and graphic attacks by a cyberbully using a fake Facebook account, 9Wants to Know has learned. ...read full article

Mom Says School Supply Deal Has Her Worried

HOUSTON - She thought she was getting an incredible bargain on school supplies. ...read full article

Smartphone Users at Risk for Personal Information Theft

Fort Lauderdale, Fla (PRWEB) Smartphone users are at risk of personal information theft as hackers target mobile devices and online banking mobile apps. Consolidated Credit Counseling Services Inc. is warning users to take precautions to prevent identity theft, a threat that can jeopardize the financial stability of their assets. ...read full article

Man charged with felony after allegedly using ex-roommate's name in 3 traffic stops

An area man accused of using his ex-roommate's name during three traffic stops now faces a felony charge of identity theft. He was indicted by a Huron County grand jury on Friday. ...read full article

Trial begins in alleged estate theft

WEST CHESTER — A Charlestown man who authorities contend ran though his aged mother's estate "like a knife through butter" went on trial Monday in Common Pleas Court on theft and forgery charges. ...read full article

Google says Gmail attack focused on Iranian targets

IDG News Service - Google said late Sunday that an attack mounted against its Gmail service targeted users primarily located in Iran, although the company has taken steps to block further interception attempts. ...read full article

HTTP DDoS Attacks Still Reign Supreme

Despite the media’s love-affair with Anonymous style cyber-anarchy and vigilante-hacktivism, the vast majority of DDoS attacks are carried out by criminals seeking financial gain, not activists, according to a new research report. ...read full article

Fake Facebook spam cannon fires double-shotted malware

Malicious spam messages generated by the infamous Cutwail botnet are targeting Facebook users as potential banking Trojan victims. ...read full article

Nokia developer forum hacked, still unavailable

IDG News Service - The community section of Nokia's developer site was hacked, and some member's e-mail addresses have been accessed, the mobile phone maker said. ...read full article

August 29, 2011

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DHS warns that Irene could prompt phishing scams

Computerworld - As Hurricane Irene barrels toward the eastern seaboard, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is warning government agencies and private companies to be on the lookout for storm-related phishing attacks and other malicious cyberactivity. ...read full article

‘Something fishy’ tip leads to San Francisco Bayview ID theft operation

An anonymous tipster led Bayview officers last week to a “huge credit fraud and identity theft ring,” San Francisco police said. ...read full article

France Introduces Data Security Breach Notification Requirement for Electronic Communication Service Providers

On August 24, 2011, France’s new law concerning electronic communications (Ordonnance n° 2011-1012 du 24 août 2011 relative aux communications électroniques, or the “Ordinance”) came into force. ...read full article

Computer breach exposes personal records of Living Health Clinic patients

The names and other confidential information of about 3,000 clients of the Living Healthy Clinic were exposed as a result of a computer security breach In July. ...read full article

Dozens of personal files discovered in west-end dumpster

Dozens of personal files have been discovered in a dumpster outside a west-end restaurant. The files included the personal information of past employees. ...read full article

Mac Lion blindly accepts any LDAP password

Apple's latest version of Mac OS X is creating serious security risks for businesses that use it to interact with a popular form of centralized networks. ...read full article

Oak Park Mall shoplifting case helped spur national fraud inquiry

When Overland Park Detective Byron Pierce busted two women who shoplifted designer jeans at Oak Park Mall, it seemed less than high drama. ...read full article

Secret Service joins probe of counterfeit check scheme

Three men charged with passing counterfeit checks at a popular New Hampshire shopping outlet had a stash of hundreds of stolen identities from around the country, authorities said. ...read full article

Security breach has campus-wide reach

Over 75,000 individuals associated with UW-Milwaukee have been told to monitor their financial records after officials discovered that a database containing their names and social security numbers may have been accessed during a computer security breach earlier this year. ...read full article

August 26, 2011

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Researchers see updated Zeus malware

A combination of the Zeus and SpyEye banking malware programs is taking shape, researchers say

IDG News Service - A dangerous piece of malicious code responsible for stealing money from online bank accounts is being updated with new functions after its source code was leaked earlier this year, according to security researchers. ...read full article

2 charged in identity theft involving unemployment claims

A routine traffic stop by a police officer in Georgia led authorities in Maryland to a suspected identity theft scheme in which state unemployment benefits totaling $170,000 were falsely obtained in the names of dozens of unwitting people. ...read full article

Coralville man accused of identity theft

A Coralville man is facing a charge of identity theft after authorities say he allegedly used someone else’s Social Security number. ...read full article

Thieves Stole IDs, Computers

Police in four North Texas cities busted an identity theft ring that ordered computers online and then stole the shipments off people's front steps. ...read full article

Mora-Lopez Sentenced to Three Months in Prison, $10,000 Fine

A man in an unusual case of identity theft was sentenced in federal court in Anchorage Thursday. Rafael Mora-Lopez had lived in Anchorage for more than two decades as Rafael Alberto Espinoza. ...read full article

Was this the e-mail that took down RSA?

A spear phishing e-mail that has surfaced in a security database looks like it may have been the one to hit RSA

IDG News Service - "I forward this file to you for review. Please open and view it." ...read full article

Insulin pump maker ignores diabetic's hack warnings

Medtronic device susceptible to wireless tampering

The maker of an insulin pump that's susceptible to wireless hacking was identified for the first time on Thursday by a diabetic researcher who said the company repeatedly ignored his warnings. ...read full article

UK Charges Another Alleged Anonymous Member

U.K. police said Thursday a 22-year-old student has been charged in connection with participating in distributed denial-of-service attacks (DDOS) with the hacking collective Anonymous. ...read full article

9 Tips for Identifying Fake Online Profiles

"She was smoking hot, unbelievably sexy ... super beautiful." This was how Nev Schulman, a 24-year-old photographer, described Megan, a fellow artist who became friendly with him on Facebook in 2007. ...read full article

August 25, 2011

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Liberty Man Who Led Police On Chase Pleas To Identity Theft Charge

GREENVILLE, SC -- A man from Liberty pled guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit identity theft. ...read full article

Maine voter registration system breached

The Maine Secretary of State’s Office said Wednesday it is investigating a potential security breach in the computer system that contains records on Maine’s registered voters. ...read full article

Clackamas deputies raid home of Gresham sports memorabilia seller

Clackamas County sheriff's detectives on Tuesday raided a home of a man with a long criminal history now suspected of selling fake sports memorabilia, including baseballs signed "Babe Ruth" and "Roger Maris." ...read full article

Woman arrested in prescription case

A Topeka woman was arrested Tuesday, accused of prescription fraud and identity theft for allegedly falsely obtaining a prescription painkiller. ...read full article

Cyber-Attacker Dumps Log-ins for 20,000 Customers, U.S. Employees

An admirer of Anonymous acted independently to breach an outsourced provider and steal a customer list with log-in credentials. Many on the list were U.S. government employees. ...read full article

S.A. woman sentenced to 25-month term in child-support scam

A San Antonio woman was sentenced Wednesday to more than two years in prison for her role in a child-support scam. ...read full article

Man charged with identity theft

A search warrant executed by the RCMP at a Mississauga home has resulted in the seizure of a number of counterfeit credit cards and equipment that is used to tamper with ATMs. ...read full article

Johnson sheriff wants investigation into missing police records, files

Johnson County Sheriff Dwayne Price said Wednesday that when he took office on Jan. 1, there were a lot of missing records — accident reports, investigative files, even personnel documents. ...read full article

Sheriff's raid on Days Inn in Phoenix nets 1 identity theft arrest

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office raided a Days Inn hotel in Phoenix, trying to arrest 10 employees on suspicion of identity theft and being in the country illegally. ...read full article

ID theft epidemic sweeps county

COLUMBIA COUNTY — An “identity theft alert,” was officially announced as of Wednesday afternoon by all county law enforcement agencies. More than 50 local persons have reported money missing due to suspicious charges to their bank and credit card accounts. ...read full article

August 24, 2011

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Former O.C. congressional candidate sentenced for identity theft

A onetime congressional candidate was sentenced Tuesday to six years and eight months in state prison for violating parole by committing identity theft when she was in the Orange County jail, authorities said. ...read full article

National Cancer Institute Employee Steals Funds for Personal Use

According to a federal criminal Information filed August 11, 2011, Jihan S. Cover, 33, of Arden, N.C., worked as a purchasing agent with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), a subdivision of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), during which time her job was to procure items and services for NIH/NCI using assigned government credit cards or purchase cards. The Information alleges that between June 2009 and December 2010, Cover used NIH/NCI purchase cards to engage in 250 unauthorized personal transactions totaling approximately $114,494. ...read full article

Lawsuit accuses comScore of extensive privacy violations

Online tracking firm surreptitiously siphons personal data, changes security settings on computers, suit alleges

Computerworld - A proposed class-action lawsuit filed in federal court in Chicago on Tuesday accuses online tracking and analytics firm comScore of surreptitiously collecting Social Security numbers, credit card numbers, passwords and other data from consumer systems. ...read full article

China hacking video shows glimpse of Falun Gong attack tool

IDG News Service - The clip shows up without explanation, lasting for about six seconds during a rather mundane documentary about hacking produced by the state-sponsored China Central Television ...read full article

Identity Theft Victim, Plagued by Allegedly False and Inaccurate Credit Reporting by FIA Card Services and Bank of America, Fights Back in Los Angeles Courtroom

A Los Angeles consumer plagued by alleged false and inaccurate credit reporting by FIA Card Services and Bank of America is fighting back in a Los Angeles courtroom. FIA Card Services is a credit card subsidiary of Bank of America. FIA has sued a Los Angeles resident named Hugh Coleman for allegedly not paying on two FIA credit cards. In a cross-action filed by Mr. Coleman against FIA and Bank of America, Mr. Coleman, a former FBI agent, states that he investigated the matter thoroughly and repeatedly asked FIA for documentation showing that he was obligated for the accounts, but FIA never provided him with these documents. ...read full article

Guilty plea for 'dead' Highland Park broker found in Vegas

LAS VEGAS -- A man arrested in Las Vegas 32 years after vanishing in Illinois and 25 years after being declared dead says he'll plead guilty in Nevada to felony identity fraud and serve up to five years' probation to avoid trial. ...read full article

Epson, HSBC Korea, domain registrar hacked: 100,000 domains affected

A series of hacks have hit the South Korean population, in a string of hacking attacks which have caused widespread disruption to the country’s state-run and privately operated firms. ...read full article

Symantec Announces August 2011 Symantec Intelligence Report

Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC) today announced the results of the August 2011 Symantec Intelligence Report, now combining the best research and analysis from the Symantec.cloud MessageLabs Intelligence Report and the Symantec State of Spam & Phishing Report. This month’s analysis reveals that once more spammers are seeking to benefit from fluctuations in the turbulent financial markets, most notably by sending large volumes of spam relating to certain “pink sheets” stocks in an attempt to “pump” the value of these stocks before “dumping” them at a profit. ...read full article

Exclusive: Hays Discloses RBS Pay Deals

The recruitment specialist Hays is at the centre of an embarrassing gaffe today after one of its employees distributed an email disclosing the remuneration of thousands of contractors working for the state-backed Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). ...read full article

Employee arrested for credit card fraud

DUBAI: An Arab man working for a major electronic company in Dubai was arrested for stealing customers’ credit card information and using it to buy expensive products from the same company. ...read full article

South Korean branch of Epson suffers breach of 350,000 people's data following hack

The details of 350,000 South Korean people have been breached following the hacking of the Epson Korea website. ...read full article

Man charged with identity theft

A search warrant executed by the RCMP at a Mississauga home has resulted in the seizure of a number of counterfeit credit cards and equipment that is used to tamper with ATMs. ...read full article

Secret Service Joins Tilton Counterfeit Check Investigation

Three Men Accused Of Using Fake Checks To Buy Merchandise In Tilton

...read full article

Romanian man to be deported after Pa. ATM scams

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Federal prosecutors in Pittsburgh say a man who will be deported to Romania after serving a sentence for skimming customer information from automatic teller machines has provided "very useful" information about an overseas crime ring that specializes in identity theft. ...read full article

Woman stole mail from southern Illinois mailboxes

Nicole Marie Lance, 30, of Billings, Mont., was sentenced Monday in federal court here on six counts of mail theft, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced. ...read full article

August 23, 2011

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Facebook data collection under fire again

A German data protection agency is concerned Facebook is collecting data in violation of E.U. law

IDG News Service - A German privacy protection authority is calling on organizations there to close their Facebook fan pages and remove the social networking site's "Like" button from their websites, arguing that Facebook harvests data in violation of German and European Union law. ...read full article

Identity thief loses bid to protect house from feds

Federal prosecutors got their man when Alfred Darnell Ford pleaded guilty to running a sophisticated identity-theft ring that obtained stolen credit cards and then used them to buy building supplies and other items. ...read full article

Yale university admits staff and student personal information exposed on Google

Yale University has notified about 43,000 faculty, staff, students and alumni that their names and Social Security numbers were publicly available via Google search for about 10 months. ...read full article

Woman has 101 Social Security numbers, 7 dates of birth: Identity thieves are busy in metro-east

There is a man in Belleville who goes by the name of Michael, but he has also been known by three other first names. ...read full article

Indictment: Adoption fraud targeted would-be parents for cash, gifts

KANSAS CITY, KS (KCTV) - Another person has been named in the case of an alleged adoption scam in the metro that made headlines across the country. ...read full article

Foxy Brown's Brother Cops to Identity Theft Charges

Foxy Brown isn't the only member of her family to have run-ins with the law, the famed female rapper's brother, Gavin “Pretty Boy” Marchand, was convicted yesterday for identity theft. ...read full article

Possible deal for 'dead' Highland Park broker found in Vegas

A lawyer for a man arrested in Las Vegas 32 years after vanishing in Illinois says a plea deal could spare his client a felony identity theft and fraud trial. ...read full article

State Police Investigate Identity Theft Case in Burlington

BURLINGTON — The Connecticut State Police Western District Major Crime Squad Detectives are conducting a criminal investigating into the theft of the identity of a Burlington Connecticut resident. ...read full article

Hong Kong police say they've arrested stock exchange hacker

The August 10 attack forced the exchange to suspend trading on HSBC, Cathay Pacific and others for a half-day.

IDG News Service - Hong Kong police have arrested a local man in connection with an Aug. 10 computer attack on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. ...read full article

History Sniffing Case Dismissed Because Defendant Fails to Quantify Losses

A federal court in New York has dismissed a case in which the plaintiff claimed that a third-party advertiser had violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) by sniffing her browser history and using flash cookies, ruling that the plaintiff didn't prove that the actions were harmful enough. ...read full article

August 22, 2011

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Anonymous breaches another US defense contractor

IDG News Service - The politically oriented hacking group, Anonymous, has released 1GB of what is says are private e-mails and documents from an executive of a U.S. defense company that sells unmanned aerial vehicles to police and the U.S. military. ...read full article

Two men arrested in insurance fraud case

A Charlotte man and Shelby man were indicted on charges that they fraudulently tried to make money off unemployment insurance claims, according to the U.S. Attorney's office in Charlotte. ...read full article

U.S. sprinter Dodson arrested on suspicion of identity theft

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) U.S. sprinter Jeremy Dodson was arrested on suspicion of identity theft just days before leaving for world championships in Daegu, South Korea. ...read full article

2 arrested in identity theft operation

FLORENCE - Two employees of a local business were arrested Friday as part of a year-long investigation into an identity theft operation. ...read full article

Un-HappyMeal: Complaint Alleges McDonald's WiFi was Platform for Devastating Pharma Hack

Suppose you're a IT professional who has an axe to grind against your employer, and knowledge of the company's network and access necessary to really do some damage. You might consider launching said attack from a free, public Wi-fi hotspot, like the ones offered at chains like McDonald's. That would be a smart idea - from your standpoint - and make it harder for you to get caught. You might _not_ want to use a personal credit card to buy a meal at said establishment, thereby putting you at the location at the exact time of the attack. That would be a _dumb_ idea. ...read full article

Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Flower Mound is notifying its patients of a breach of patient health information

Breach Notice

...read full article

Hundreds of police officers caught illegally accessing criminal records computer

More than 200 police officers and support staff in Britain's biggest force have been caught accessing the highly sensitive Police National Computer for their own ends.

...read full article

State Police Investigate Identity Theft Case in Burlington

BURLINGTON — The Connecticut State Police Western District Major Crime Squad Detectives are conducting a criminal investigating into the theft of the identity of a Burlington Connecticut resident. ...read full article

Insulin pump attack prompts call for federal probe

The hack of a commercially available insulin pump that diabetics can control wirelessly has attracted the attention of US lawmakers who oversee the safety of the nation's airwaves. ...read full article

9/11 grip on info can still be wacky

NEW YORK -- Take a virtual tour of New York on Google Maps and some blurry images appear. ...read full article

Detective on phone-hacking probe team is arrested

police officer working on Scotland Yard's investigation into alleged phone-hacking at the now-defunct Sunday tabloid the News of the World was arrested by cops from the anti-corruption unit of the Metropolitan police late last week. ...read full article

State Police Search for Suspect in Identity Theft

The Connecticut State Police are conducting a criminal investigation into the theft of the identity of a Burlington resident. ...read full article

Foxy Brown's brother guilty of identity theft

THE BROTHER and former hype man of rapper Foxy Brown faces up to five years in jail after he admitted to identity theft. ...read full article

Woman has 101 Social Security numbers, 7 dates of birth: Identity thieves are busy in metro-east

There is a man in Belleville who goes by the name of Michael, but he has also been known by three other first names. ...read full article

August 19, 2011

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N.C. police investigate ID theft that targeted soldier

A Harnett County soldier's decision to ask a friend to house-sit during his deployment to Afghanistan led to a massive betrayal of trust that included identity theft, the fraudulent sale of possessions and the friend's death, according to police in Erwin. ...read full article

AES crypto compromised by 'groundbreaking' attack

Cryptographers have discovered a way to break the Advanced Encryption Standard used to protect everything from top-secret government documents to online banking transactions. ...read full article

Former CU sprinter Dodson charged with ID theft

A former University of Colorado track star was arrested on suspicion of identity theft a week before he was scheduled to represent Team USA in an international competition. ...read full article

Panama City Woman Receives 36 Month Sentence For Bank Fraud, Forgery and Identity Theft

Elizabeth Helen Shanks, 29, of Panama City, has been sentenced to 36 months in federal prison for bank fraud, uttering forged securities, and aggravated identity theft. ...read full article

UK man faces five charges for repeated Facebook hacks

A 25-year-old UK man has been charged with five counts of illegal hacking for repeatedly penetrating the security defenses of Facebook. ...read full article

Looting suspect traced on Facebook by stolen laptop's owner

A teenager who allegedly stole a laptop from a west London flat during the riots was traced on Facebook by the computer's owner. ...read full article

NY man accused of cashing dead brother's benefits

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. (AP) - An 81-year-old man from suburban New York is accused of collecting nearly $145,000 from his dead brother's retirement benefits. ...read full article

August 18, 2011

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Anonymous claims release of BART police officers' data

Hack of 102 officers' data in apparent retaliation for last weeks mobile phone service service cut-off

Computerworld - Hackers claiming to belong to the Anonymous hacking collective this morning publicly posted the names, home addresses, email addresses and passwords of 102 police officers belonging to San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) agency. ...read full article

Warrant issued for Bartlett woman in identity theft

A Bartlett woman who tried to collect an insurance payout by falsely claiming her husband was an FBI agent killed in the line of duty has been indicted in Cook County on identity theft charges. ...read full article

Ala tax preparer gets 2 years for identity theft

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — A Birmingham-area tax preparer is going to prison for two years after pleading guilty in a scheme to file false tax returns. ...read full article

DoD to expand cyber program with industry

BALTIMORE — The Defense Department is moving forward with a program intended to increase sharing with industry of classified and sensitive data about cyberattacks, Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn announced Tuesday. ...read full article

Internet Explorer protects best against socially engineered malware

Internet Explorer is better at defending against socially engineered malware than competitors' browsers and the contest isn't even close, according to a worldwide test of browsers bysecurity research firm NSS Labs. ...read full article

Eau Claire man suspected in two forgery cases under two names

A 43-year-old Eau Claire man already facing criminal charges in Eau Claire County Court for a forgery case under a different name was arrested Wednesday for forgery, passing forged checks and identity theft. ...read full article

Rochester woman gets 3 years for bank fraud

A 33-year-old Rochester woman has been sentenced to three years in prison for bank fraud and identity theft involving counterfeit checks. ...read full article

App developer slurped kids' data without consent

A mobile applications developer will be fined $50,000 for allegedly collecting and disclosing children's personal information without parental consent, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has said. ...read full article

Social Security wrongly declares 14,000 people dead each year

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- More Americans are being erroneously killed off by the Social Security Administration every day. ...read full article

California Approves Data Security Rules for Smart Meters

The state of California has approved new rules to protect the data stored on so-called "smart meters," in an effort to protect customer consumption data as household utilities are wired and connected to an IP-enabled "smart grid." ...read full article

Trojaned Dog Fight App Strikes Blow for Animal Rights

Researchers at Symantec discovered that an outdated version of a controversial Android app called ‘Dog Wars’ is infected with a trojan apparently placed by animal rights activists offended by the game's premise. ...read full article

August 17, 2011

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Identity Theft Ring Lands 5 Men In Jail

MEMPHIS, TN - Five men from Miami, Florida were arrested in Memphis on Monday, August 15, 2011 after police learned of an identity theft ring that made it to town. ...read full article

Area woman accused of fraud, identity theft faces 174-count indictment

A 174-count indictment has been handed down for a Titus County woman accused of committing fraud and identity theft while working at Pioneer Credit Co. in Mount Pleasant, Texas. ...read full article

Social Security wrongly declares 14,000 people dead each year

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- More Americans are being erroneously killed off by the Social Security Administration every day. ...read full article

Finance director convicted on charges of stealing more than $500,000 from church

The former chief financial officer of a historic downtown church was convicted of stealing more than $500,000 from the institution over five years. ...read full article

Ala tax preparer gets 2 years for identity theft

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - A Birmingham-area tax preparer is going to prison for two years after pleading guilty in a scheme to file false tax returns. ...read full article

Judge unseals I.D. theft case

A federal judge on Tuesday unsealed the case concerning an alleged identity theft scheme in Hattiesburg and Laurel during a detention hearing for one of the 10 arrested in association with the purported racket. ...read full article

Mass. travel agent arrested for scamming college students

UPPER SADDLE RIVER – A Massachusetts travel agent has been arrested for credit card fraud, theft and identity theft after scamming a group of college students — including one from the borough — who were sold bogus airline tickets to China. ...read full article

Cancer scammer headed back to jail

The Upper Moreland woman who was on probation after serving jail time for pretending to have cancer and bilking sympathizers is back behind bars ...read full article

App developer slurped kids' data without consent

A mobile applications developer will be fined $50,000 for allegedly collecting and disclosing children's personal information without parental consent, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has said. ...read full article

Personal data from mortgage broker found in garbage bin

Construction workers found five boxes of files containing personal information in a garbage Tuesday in Edmonton. ...read full article

August 16, 2011

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College Students Interviewed Indicate They Don’t Understand Importance of Identity Theft

14% of data breaches in June 2011 occurred at educational institutions according to IdentityHawk’s Data Breach Report from July 2011

...read full article

'Mafiaboy' breaks silence, paints 'portrait of a hacker'

(CNN) -- Michael Calce once briefly shut down this site. ...read full article

Ex-bank manager admits fake ID scam in $10 million ID theft case

Fawsiyo Hassan Farah, a former Wayzata branch manager for Wells Fargo, convinced a federal judge Monday that she is indeed guilty of bank fraud and identity theft. ...read full article

LaSalle Avenue woman, 28, accused in debit card theft

LOCKPORT—City police arrested a Niagara Falls woman Monday and accused her of running up $423 worth of purchases on a stolen debit card. ...read full article

Illegal bear hunt, identity theft net Florida man $66,450 in fines

A Florida man who stole a friend's identity to illegally kill a brown bear in Alaska — then complained about the hunt because he wanted a bigger bear — has been sentenced to pay more than $66,000 in penalties. ...read full article

Illegal Dominican Republic Alien Gets 3 Years for Fake ID

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A Dominican national, who illegally re-entered the United States, was sentenced to three years in jail followed by three years of supervised release for identity theft and falsely representing his citizenship ...read full article

Woman Arrested in Hoboken After Credit Card Theft

A 37-year-old woman from Roselle Park was arrested in Hoboken on Saturday after allegedly spending close to $7,000 on somebody else's credit card, police said. ...read full article

Scammers get hundreds of dollars out of local couple

JEFFERSON CITY, MO -- We've known for years that identity theft rings operate in various countries around the world, and that we are vulnerable right here in Mid-Missouri. ...read full article

Former Waiter Indicted In Credit Card Skimming Scheme

A former waiter at a TGI Friday's restaurant in Maryland has been indicted on 16 counts of identity theft, theft and conspiracy to commit theft in a credit card skimming scheme that ripped off 73 people. ...read full article

Credit-card company uses text messages to fight ID theft

MIAMI - One credit card company is using text messages as the newest tool in fighting identity theft. Text alerts are sent when unusual activity is detected on customers accounts. ...read full article

August 15, 2011

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Hacker Group Posts Names of BART Site Subscribers

SAN FRANCISCO – Hackers broke into a website for San Francisco's mass transit system Sunday and posted contact information for more than 2,000 customers, the latest showdown between anarchists angry at perceived attempts to limit free speech and officials trying to control protests that grow out of social networking and have the potential to become violent. ...read full article

Many child identity-theft victims from Florida

Florida had 21,581 identity-theft cases last year, more than any other state, according to the Federal Trade Commission. And an increasing number of those cases are thefts of children's identities. ...read full article

Scammers sharpen skills with social media

Social media, such as Facebook, is making it easier for scammers to dupe their victims, South Australian Consumer Affairs Minister Gail Gago says. ...read full article

Aussies prone to phishing from 'friends'

An email appearing to come from a friend is a good way to get through Australians' defences, a security company claims.

...read full article

Facebook trojan spreading, says Eset

Users should be cautious about suspicious links sent via Facebook chat.

...read full article

Bethesda Forums Hacked; All Passwords Reset

And Lightning Strikes twice. After having their main website hacked back in June, Bethesda have now sent out a new email to all forum users, informing of a security breach. No guilty parties were mentioned this time around, and as of now it doesn’t seem that many out there are confessing either. ...read full article

Missing Files From Locked Storage Prompt Alert

HONOLULU -- University of Hawaii officials are warning that confidential financial information of close to 2,000 people is unaccounted for. ...read full article

Another Korean data breach - GOMTV.NET spills user account data, including passwords

Another South Korean service provider has reported a large-scale data breach, leaking usernames and passwords for subscribers worldwide. ...read full article

August 12, 2011

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Twitter 'Stalker app' just a phishing scam

A "Stalkers app" doing the rounds on Twitter is actually a phishing scam, security watchers warn. ...read full article

Credit Card Identity Theft From Russia (And Not With Love)

Federal prosecutors inVirginia alleged that Jonathan Oliveras, 26, managed a credit card fraud operation that operated throughout the East Coast of the United States. That scheme involved the purchases over the Internet of stolen credit card from sellers believed to be located in Russia. Upon obtaining the stolen information, Oliveras purportedly distributed the data to individuals in New York, New Jersey and Washington, D.C. ,who then used the information to make fraudulent purchases. ...read full article

Middle Smithfield woman's identity stolen to pay hospital bill

A Middle Smithfield woman became the victim of identity theft when someone used her insurance information to pay for $1,243 worth of hospital treatment at a hospital in Camden, N.J., Pennsylvania State Police said. ...read full article

Former Laurel T.G.I. Friday’s employee indicted for identity theft

A grand jury in Prince George’s County indicted an Elkridge man Thursday on 16 counts of identity theft, theft and conspiracy to commit theft after the man allegedly skimmed customers’ credit card information while working as a server at T.G.I. Friday’s in Laurel. ...read full article

Identity theft charge puts Muscatine man in jail

MUSCATINE, Iowa— Isaac Hernandez, 29, has been charged with identity theft, a class D felony. ...read full article

Fake Doctor Pleads to Fraud and Identity Theft Related to Eldercare

According to federal prosecutors, Patrick Lynch, 54, of Toms River, New Jersey, established Visiting Doctors of New Jersey in order to provide medical care for elderly home-bound patients in Monmouth and Ocean Counties. ...read full article

Android respawn horror: Hacker says hackers' phones hacked

Claims that both CDMA and 4G networks were compromised at the recent Defcon security event in Las Vegas have raised little surprise, but the vulnerability of handsets is hotly debated. ...read full article

August 11, 2011

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Hack on Hong Kong Stock Exchange disrupts trading

Hackers took down a website belonging to the Hong Kong stock Exchange, prompting Asia's third-largest securities exchange to suspend trading in the shares of London-based HSBC and six other companies. ...read full article

University of Wisconsin hacked: 75,000 social security numbers, student names exposed

The University of Wisconsin’s Milwaukee campus has been subject to a malware attack, which has exposed names and social security numbers of students — past and present — and staff alike. ...read full article

Prison sentence issued in huge identity theft case.

GREENVILLE — A Quinlan man has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to participating in perhaps the largest identity theft case in Hunt County history. ...read full article

Woman Wanted In Identity Theft Cases

HOUSTON -- A reward has been offered for information about a woman who is suspected in nearly a dozen identity theft cases. ...read full article

Man charged with identity theft

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) - Federal agents have arrested a 21-year-old Laurel man and charged him in connection to an alleged identity theft scheme operating in Hattiesburg and Laurel. ...read full article

Laurel man charged in identity theft scheme

Federal agents arrested a Laurel man Wednesday and charged him in connection to an alleged identity theft scheme operating in Hattiesburg and Laurel. ...read full article

RCMP seek alleged fraudster

North Vancouver RCMP are asking for help in finding a woman accused of attempted identity theft and fraud at a North Vancouver bank. ...read full article

Arrest made in I.D. theft scheme

Federal agents arrested nine people Tuesday following the investigation of an alleged identity theft scheme operating in Hattiesburg and Laurel. ...read full article

August 10, 2011

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China hit by 480,000 Trojan horse attacks in 2010

IDG News Service - China said it saw close to 480,000 Trojan horse attacks in 2010, with almost half originating from outside the country, according to a government security agency. ...read full article

DSHS leaked confidential info in nearly 4,000 cases

SEATTLE -- The state admits it could have put thousands of parents at risk for identity theft or physical or emotional harm after one agency accidentally leaked confidential information. ...read full article

Suspect in missing Chandler woman case 'guilty' of 36 charges

PHOENIX - A jury has convicted a Valley man on 36 counts of fraud, identity theft and money laundering in the case of a Chandler woman who went missing last year. ...read full article

Deputies: Belle Chasse McDonald's employee stole credit-card numbers

BELLE CHASSE, La. – A McDonald’s employee has been arrested for allegedly stealing the credit card numbers of customers using the drive-thru lane. ...read full article

District woman pleads guilty to check fraud

A 43-year-old District woman admitted Monday in Alexandria’s federal court that she used more than 1,000 counterfeit or fraudulent checks to purchase merchandise at Washington-area retailers, court records show. ...read full article

Booz Allen CEO downplays effect of Anonymous hack

IDG News Service - A July cyberattack on Booz Allen Hamilton will not materially harm the company's bottom line, its CEO said Tuesday. ...read full article

Citigroup hit with another data leak

Citigroup's Japanese credit card unit said personal information for more than 92,000 of its customers was illegally sold to a third party. ...read full article

Defcon: VoIP makes a good platform for controlling botnets

Network World - Las Vegas - Botnets and their masters can communicate with each other by calling into the same VoIP conference call and swapping data using touch tones, researchers demonstrated at Defcon. ...read full article

Is Anonymous Linked to the Norway Shooter E-mail Hack?

A Norwegian hacker collective that allegedly gained access to the email accounts of Anders Behring Breivik, the confessed perpetrator of killing spree that took the lives of seventy-seven individuals, may have connections to Anonymous, according to a local journalist who has had contact with the group. ...read full article

Brooklyn Man Pleads Guilty to Online Identity Theft Involving More Than $700,000 in Reported Fraud

WASHINGTON – A Brooklyn, N.Y., man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., for his role in managing a credit card fraud operation that operated throughout the East Coast of the United States, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Neil H. MacBride of the Eastern District of Virginia. ...read full article

August 9, 2011

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Syrian hackers retaliate, deface Anonymous' social network

Counters Anonymous' earlier sabotage of nation's Ministry of Defense site

Computerworld - After the hacking gang Anonymous took credit for defacing Syria's Ministry of Defense website, a Syrian group today retaliated by posting gruesome photos on Anonymous' embryonic social network. ...read full article

Are Hijacked Facebook Accounts Identity Theft?

An interesting Appellate Court opinion was recently issued that, while limited in scope, requires us to acknowledge the expanding realm of our own identity footprints and the need for evolving views of how we define identity theft. The case, PEOPLE v. ROLANDO S., stemmed from a Juvenile Court case in Kings county California. ...read full article

Woman pleads to stealing credit card data from Navy base fast-food customers

NORFOLK — A Newport News woman has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges that she stole credit card information from customers at a fast-food restaurant. ...read full article

Hacked Wordpress Blogs Used to Poison Google Image Search

A researcher has found evidence of thousands of compromised Wordpress blogs that are being used to insert malicious images into Google search results. ...read full article

Fake Firefox update bundles Trojan add-on

Scammers are attempting to trick Firefox users into downloading backdoored software via spam emails that supposedly advertise an "update" to the open-source browser. ...read full article

10-year old hacker finds flaw in mobile games

A 10-year-old hacker has won the admiration of her adult peers for finding a previously unknown vulnerability in games on iOS and Android devices. ...read full article

August 8, 2011

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Debit card fraud on the rise

On Valentine’s Day Larry Pacilio bought more than $800 worth of diamond jewelry for someone he never met, at a store in Tennessee he never has been to. ...read full article

WASP: Drone Plane Becomes Hackers' Tool

The age-old theory in warfare is that the best place to be is the high ground, from which you can see and attack your enemies. Richard Perkins and Mike Tassey decided to apply that idea to cyber warfare as well. ...read full article

Poll: Consumers fear loss of personal data from e-health systems

Computerworld - Nearly 80% of U.S. consumers surveyed this year said they're wary of electronic health records because they fear that their personal information might be stolen or lost if it were stored in an EHR system. ...read full article

Nyack Hospital data theft shameful

Re "Nyack Hospital workers warned after sensitive data stolen," July 27 article: I am outraged at the lack of security afforded my and my spouse's confidential, personal information that Nyack Hospital failed to safeguard. ...read full article

Smartphones a new frontier for hackers

LAS VEGAS: Hackers are out to stymie your smartphone. Security researchers have uncovered yet another strain of malicious software aimed at smartphones that run Google's popular Android operating system. ...read full article

AntiSec hackers dump data after hacking police websites

IDG News Service - The war between law enforcement and the Anonymous hacking collective continued this weekend as hackers dumped a 10 gigabyte database that included private e-mails and information sent by confidential informants. Hackers say they stole information during an attack on more than 70 small-town law enforcement agencies. ...read full article

Spamking facing 40 year jail sentence

SAN FRANCISCO: A Las Vegas man accused of sending more than 27 million spam messages to Facebook users faces federal fraud and computer tampering charges that could send him to prison for more than 40 years. ...read full article

Cybercrooks exploit interest in Harry Potter ebook site

Malware-slingers are tapping into the buzz around a new Harry Potter site to mount a variety of scams designed to either defraud, infect or otherwise con would-be victims. ...read full article

'Shady RAT' hacking claims overblown, say security firms

Computerworld - Two security companies are questioning claims that a cyber-espionage campaign uncovered by a rival firm was sophisticated or even extraordinary. ...read full article

Police ask for help in identity theft case in WL

Police are looking for a woman who withdrew funds recently at a West Lafayette bank using the identity - and bank account - of a Chicago woman. ...read full article

Elementary counselor indicted by federal grand jury

CHADBOURN, NC (WECT) - An elementary school counselor in Columbus County has been indicted by a federal grand jury on numerous counts. ...read full article

ID theft ring leader lands in jail

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The alleged mastermind behind a major identity theft operation spent the night behind bars. ...read full article

August 5, 2011

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Profile pics on social media sites pose privacy risk, researcher warns

Computerworld - LAS VEGAS -- Imagine walking down a street and having a total stranger being able to instantly pull up your name, date of birth, Social Security number, your last blog item and other data on their smart phone. ...read full article

Russian online payment site linked to MacDefender malware scam

After a raid on Russian payment giant Chronopay's offices, authorities have found evidence linking the company to the MacDefender fake anti-virus scam that targeted Mac users. ...read full article

Met Police warns off wannabe hackers, teenage collars in danger of being felt

The Metropolitan Police has issued a statement warning off would-be hacktivists and reminding of them of the law against computer misuse. ...read full article

RSA's SecurID Breach Linked to China, Researcher Says

The breach of RSA, the security division of EMC, last spring in which sensitive information related to RSA SecurID tokens was stolen, can be traced back to an attack originating in China, a security researcher strongly believes based on a close look into malware associated with the RSA breach. ...read full article

Researchers: Square Mobile Card Reader Provides Straight Line to Illicit Cash?

Security researchers at the Black Hat Briefings demonstrated a method for turning purloined credit card information into cash, this time using Square, a free credit card reader that promises to turn anyone with a mobile device into a merchant capable of accepting credit card payments. ...read full article

Researchers Show Off Homemade Spy Drone At Black Hat

A pair of security researchers Wednesday unveiled a remote controlled, unmanned aerial vehicle capable of cracking Wi-Fi passwords, exploiting weak wireless access points and mimicking a GSM tower to intercept cell phone conversations. ...read full article

Phishing scam still lures victims

OGDEN, Aug 03, 2011 (Standard-Examiner - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Despite previous warnings, people continue to fall victim to a phishing scam and give out their Social Security, debit card and PIN numbers. ...read full article

Over 100 Indian Govt. Websites Defaced Since January

A total of 117 Indian government websites were defaced by hackers from January to June this year, prompting the government to take additional security measures, a federal minister told Parliament. ...read full article

Travelodge blames 'vindictive individual' for email database breach

Hacker or disaffected worker mystery remains

Travelodge UK has confirmed that a customer database security breach was behind the recent run of spam emails to its customers. ...read full article

Spamford Wallace charged for hacking 500,000 Facebookers

One of the first figures to plaster the internet with millions of spam messages before being driven underground has been criminally charged for hacking some 500,000 Facebook accounts, stealing their personal information, and sending 27 million unwanted advertisements. ...read full article

NYPD busts gang of identity thieves, cybercriminals: DA's office

NEW YORK (Reuters)- Six members of a large-scale identity theft and cybercrime gang were indicted on Thursday for stealing over $1 million from at least 80 clients of J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office said. ...read full article

10 charged with stealing mail, using identities

Investigators say they have broken up an identity-theft ring that used stolen mail to target victims. ...read full article

August 4, 2011

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Hershey's website hacked, recipe changed

One would think that some things in life — such as chocolate and chocolate-related recipes — are sacred even in the eyes of hackers, but a recent attack on a website belonging to chocolate manufacturer Hershey's proves otherwise. ...read full article

How to unlock a car with a text message

Las Vegas (CNN) -- Don Bailey says he can unlock thousands of cars across the United States simply by sending a few texts from his Android phone. ...read full article

Ex-CIA official sounds alarm about hackers' next targets

The former director of the CIA's Counterterrorism Center raised concerns Wednesday about an impending "code war" in which hackers will tamper not just with the Internet but with technology that runs real-world infrastructure. ...read full article

72 Charged in Probe of Child Sexual Abuse Network

WASHINGTON – Seventy-two people have been charged with participating in an international child pornography network that prosecutors say used an online bulletin board called Dreamboard to trade tens of thousands of images and videos of sexually abused children. ...read full article

Insulin Pumps Vulnerable to Hacking

Even the human bloodstream isn't safe from computer hackers. ...read full article

Woman charged with identity theft

ENDICOTT — A 28-year-old Endicott woman was charged Wednesday with third-degree identity theft and fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, the Broome County Sheriff’s Office said. ...read full article

Websites selling fake IDs a booming business

CHICAGO — Fake IDs for underage drinkers have graduated from being a dorm room enterprise to a China-based Internet business, say authorities who are scrambling to stay a step ahead of the counterfeiters. ...read full article

Kaiser employee ID theft suspect pleads no contest

SACRAMENTO, CA - A benefits clerk, who was busted while about to undergo liposuction surgery using fraudulently-obtained credit card information from one of her victims, has pleaded no contest to identity theft. ...read full article

Five charged in DuPage credit card scam

Five California residents who used “re-encoded” credit cards to go on an electronics shopping spree in DuPage County are now facing conspiracy and identity theft charges, prosecutors said Wednesday. ...read full article

Welfare worker admits stealing nearly $200,000 in tax money

COOK COUNTY, Ill.— A suburban woman in charge of providing welfare checks and running a food pantry has pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $200,000 in tax money during her six-year tenure as welfare director for Hanover Township. ...read full article

Eugene Man Gets 65 Months in Prison for Insurance Fraud

EUGENE, Ore. -- A Eugene man was sentenced to 65 months in federal prison for identity theft and wire fraud charges. ...read full article

August 3, 2011

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West New York man pleads guilty to identity theft scheme

A West New York man faces up to three years in prison after pleading guilty to identity theft yesterday following a probe that began when he was pulled over in a stolen BMW, officials said. ...read full article

Capitol Alert: Attorney general, FPPC asked to investigate identity theft ads

The state attorney general and California's campaign watchdog agency have been asked to investigate a new labor-backed group telling voters that signing initiative petitions increases risk of identity fraud. ...read full article

Death & Taxes & Identity Theft

Dealing with the death of your spouse is tough. But when you are attempting to file that final joint return and IRS notifies you that someone else has already filed using your spouse’s name and social security number, it creates a rippling of emotions that are hard to describe. ...read full article

Posing as a different Facebook user can constitute identity theft, US court rules

A California Court of Appeal ruled that a school pupil had committed identity theft under Californian laws when he obtained a schoolmate's email password, used it to gain access to her Facebook account, and posted sexually suggestive messages whilst posing as the girl. ...read full article

Janesville woman: Fraud driven by want

JANESVILLE — A woman accused of taking out more than $600,000 in loans in other people’s names told investigators she had “champagne taste on a beer budget,” according to a criminal complaint issued Monday ...read full article

Shelton P.D. Assisting in Florida Man's Credit Card Fraud Investigation

The Shelton Police Department has been enlisted by the Connecticut Financial Crimes Task Force to aid investigations in a federal credit card fraud and identity theft offenses case. ...read full article

State-sponsored 5-year global cyberattack uncovered

A five-year operation targeting more than 70 global companies, governments and non-profit organisations was probably the work of an intelligence agency, according to McAfee. ...read full article

Korean national ID numbers spring up all over Chinese Web

The number of leaked Korean social security numbers available online is likely to skyrocket as a massive social network hacking attack left more than three quarters of the nation exposed. ...read full article

Sun admits data stolen amid fresh hack claims

Personal details of thousands of Sun readers have been posted online following a potentially previously undisclosed hack attack on News International. ...read full article

Postman jailed over four years of theft

Jewellery, mobile phones, DVDs and greetings card were among Peter Webb’s haul. ...read full article

Eight Indicted for Counterfeit Check, Mail Theft, Identity Theft Conspiracy

Scheme allegedly involved stealing mail from businesses in Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma. ...read full article

August 2, 2011

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Airbnb apologizes: 'We have really screwed things up'

(CNN) -- Vacation rental site Airbnb apologized Monday in the wake of recent highly publicized rental horror stories and announced new property protections and safety measures for site users. ...read full article

Fake invitations to Google+ can lead to identity theft

TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - Google is trying its luck in social media with the search engine's new web site, Google+. Lots of excitement coincides with an exclusive Google+ invitation, but some are forgetting their Internet safety rules as a result. ...read full article

Peninsula hospital reports medical records theft

BURLINGAME -- A mailroom employee at Mills-Peninsula Medical Center in Burlingame took home medical documents for roughly 1,500 patients over a nearly yearlong period, the health care system announced Monday ...read full article

Man facing charges: stealing checks, identity

A Clinton man has been charged with seven total felony counts for allegedly stealing checks from a relative — and her identity in the process — and cashing them locally, according to Sampson County Sheriff’s authorities. ...read full article

Malware and breaches hit Android and the cloud big

Global information security firm Trend Micro Inc. has just released its 2Q 2011 Threat Roundup report. And the company’s top execs would have us know they consider “the most notable trends in the second quarter of 2011” to be “the proliferation of Android malware and cloud-computing-related data breaches at a magnitude never seen before,” and that “social networking scams became even more sophisticated, and cybercriminals continued to instigate a myriad malicious schemes” during the same period. ...read full article

Thieves allegedly used Dunkin' Donuts gift cards to steal cash from ATMs

TWO Romanian men were indicted on charges they reprogrammed Dunkin' Donuts gift cards to dispense cash at ATMs, New York City prosecutors said today. ...read full article

Man charged with using dead girlfriend's food stamp card

JUNEAU - A 28-year-old Beaver Dam man has been charged with taking his girlfriend's food stamp QUEST card and using it to buy more than $1,000 of groceries the day after her death. ...read full article

Former TD Bank worker indicted in fraud scheme that included county branches

A federal grand jury has indicted a former TD Bank employee for her alleged role in a scheme involving fraudulent withdrawals totaling nearly $70,000 from branches in Burlington and Camden counties between October and February. ...read full article

'Work from home' spam scam floods Twitter

Cybercrooks are using compromised Twitter accounts to spamvertise work-at-home scams. ...read full article

Sun compo entrants' privates exposed in public

Security lapses at News International have exposed the email addresses and other personal information of readers who entered competitions in The Sun, the UK's biggest selling daily newspaper. ...read full article

Scareware scammers now phishing for punters

Scareware scammers are targeting credit card users with a new run of spam emails falsely warning recipients that their plastic has been blocked ...read full article

August 1, 2011

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American Express Security Hole Still Open After One Year

A Year Ago in August MailCase investigators uncovered a security breach in the credit card activation system used by American Express. MailCase alerted consumers to this security hole and also alerted Amercian Express multiple times. After one year MailCase investigators have found that American Express has not fixed the security hole. ...read full article

Report: City Workers The Victims Of ID Theft

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — More than two dozen City of Pittsburgh employees have become the victims of identity theft. ...read full article

Tempe ATMs used in card scheme

In a scheme that police say stretched from Bulgaria to Tempe, six defendants are accused of using a device to "skim" financial information from bank cards and using it to withdraw as much as $300,000, authorities said Sunday. ...read full article

Online identity fraud doubles to 1 in 10

A recent survey revealing online identity fraud has doubled in 4 years to 10%, demonstrates the need for people to fast track their education on the ways they can be swindled, and what the effects can be should they become victims of identity theft, a national credit repairer says. ...read full article

Creative scammer awaits sentence

He may be a thief, but give Timothy Devon Huntley Jr. credit for ingenuity. ...read full article

Former restaurant server charged in credit card theft

A Greeley restaurant server is facing a felony identity theft charge for allegations that he made off with a customer’s credit card, using it for large purchases at area stores. ...read full article

Investigation continues in arrest of restaurant owner

A coffee shop/restaurant Jeffery Glenn Toohey leased and operated in James City was closed after he was arrested last week for identity theft and failing to register as a sex offender. ...read full article

Denver Dumpsters Issues Warning: Could be Primary Source of Identify Theft

Taking a page from the Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, the Denver Dumpster rental company warns roll off container customers everywhere in the city and Denver Metro to be careful. Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the ar ...read full article

Police charge Scottish teen over Soca attack

UK police have charged an 18-year-old with hacking the Serious Organised Crime Agency's (Soca) website as part of an ongoing investigation into the infamous LulzSec and Anonymous hacktivist crews. ...read full article

Credit card details hacked at Horsham business

Police at Horsham, in the state's west, say the computer system of a Horsham business has been hacked and people's credit card details stolen. For legal reasons, police are not identifying which business had its computer remotely accessed. ...read full article

77 Law Enforcement websites hit in mass attack by #Antisec Anonymous

Because of FBI’s actions against Anonymous and Lulzsec including several arrests, Now AntiSec supporters have targeted 77 law enforcement domains and walked away with everything on them. 77 domains were hosted on the same server. ...read full article

Secret Service, Placer County sheriff’s probe reels in big “phisher”

Placer County sheriff’s investigators are being credited with playing a key role in putting a Sacramento man behind bars for what is being considered the most widespread high-tech “phishing” operation the region has experienced. ...read full article