Identity Fraud (good advice)
In the UK there are now more than five million broadband users, and consumers are increasingly using the internet to make life easier by conducting everyday tasks, such as banking and shopping, online.
Around one fifth of people in the UK did the majority of their banking over the internet during 2005.
However, consumers seem unaware of the risks of both new and emerging threats, and often have a ?head in the sand? or ?it?ll-never-happen-to-me? attitude, despite cyber crime being a major issue and netting more than drug trafficking in the last year.
Indeed 62 per cent of UK consumers thought that online fraud could not happen to them, and over 40 per cent said that they were not aware whether they had been victims of online fraud or not. Of those
questioned, one in ten also indicated that they would have no qualms about giving their credit card details to an unidentified third party.
Internet crime is not just about credit cards, though. A major new and rapidly growing threat is online identity theft, which means that internet users? identities are used illegally without the knowledge of the individual victims.
This is one of the fastest growing types of frauds in the UK, with eight per cent of UK PC users falling victim to online fraud and 15 per cent knowing someone who has been targeted by an internet criminal. This represents a serious problem for internet users, unless they are made aware of how they can protect themselves from the cause and possible consequences.
Identity theft also poses a risk to the continued adoption of the internet as a channel for companies and customers to interact, and this threat needs to be handled in a way that empowers consumers to join the fight against identity theft. Identity theft is a serious and growing problem and government, industry and consumers must work together to find a solution.
This security report, the first in the series, brings together the skills, experience and research of government, law enforcement agencies and industry, including BT, CPP, Get Safe Online, Lloyds TSB, Metropolitan Police and Yahoo!. It will examine what online identity theft is, the current situation and where we go from here, as users and industry attempt to reduce the risks.
Identity theft
Identity theft (or impersonation fraud), whether on or offline, is the misuse of the identity (such as the name, date of birth, current address or previous addresses) of another person without their knowledge or
consent.
Obtaining someone?s personal details is not a criminal offence, nor is creating fake utility bills or bank statements that can be used to prove you are that person. An offence is only committed when someone attempts to use the stolen identity to obtain goods or services ? identity fraud.
Identity fraud is a lot more common than most people think, with a quarter of UK adults having either been the victim of such fraud or know someone who has ? according to CIFAS, there were 137,000 cases
during 2005, a 14 per cent increase over 2004. The Home Office estimates identity fraud to cost £1.7 billion or £35 per adult per year, compared with £1.3 billion in 2002.
There are numerous ways in which identities can be stolen, the most
common of which are:
? Bin raiding ? Unskilled fraudsters retrieve documents such as bank statements, utility bills or even junk mail that you have thrown away. The information obtained can be used to apply for credit in your name
? Phishing ? Fraudulent e-mails pretending to be from your bank asking for your account details. Once obtained these details are used to operate accounts fraudulently.
? Skimming ? Cloning of payment cards using devices bolted onto cash machines, or copied by unscrupulous individuals with access to credit/debit card, for example, staff in restaurants or petrol stations
? Moving house ? Mail still being delivered to your old address can be used to set up finance agreements in your name
? Social engineering ? Inadvertent revealing personal information through lottery scams or cold calling.
However, while public awareness of the dangers of identity theft increased during 2005, publicity centered mostly on the risks posed by offline fraud, such as throwing identifying documents like utility bills in the bin.
The 90 per cent increase in document shredder sales during 2005 shows how well the ?shred your documents? message from the Home Office, police and industry has been promoted. However, stealing documents from people?s rubbish is only one of the ways that criminals can steal your identity. The personal details of most individuals may be more easily stolen using the internet than offline.
WEBMASTERS note..............................
I have attached a full report on this issue below, this goes into details of the what, how and prevention.
Around one fifth of people in the UK did the majority of their banking over the internet during 2005.
However, consumers seem unaware of the risks of both new and emerging threats, and often have a ?head in the sand? or ?it?ll-never-happen-to-me? attitude, despite cyber crime being a major issue and netting more than drug trafficking in the last year.
Indeed 62 per cent of UK consumers thought that online fraud could not happen to them, and over 40 per cent said that they were not aware whether they had been victims of online fraud or not. Of those
questioned, one in ten also indicated that they would have no qualms about giving their credit card details to an unidentified third party.
Internet crime is not just about credit cards, though. A major new and rapidly growing threat is online identity theft, which means that internet users? identities are used illegally without the knowledge of the individual victims.
This is one of the fastest growing types of frauds in the UK, with eight per cent of UK PC users falling victim to online fraud and 15 per cent knowing someone who has been targeted by an internet criminal. This represents a serious problem for internet users, unless they are made aware of how they can protect themselves from the cause and possible consequences.
Identity theft also poses a risk to the continued adoption of the internet as a channel for companies and customers to interact, and this threat needs to be handled in a way that empowers consumers to join the fight against identity theft. Identity theft is a serious and growing problem and government, industry and consumers must work together to find a solution.
This security report, the first in the series, brings together the skills, experience and research of government, law enforcement agencies and industry, including BT, CPP, Get Safe Online, Lloyds TSB, Metropolitan Police and Yahoo!. It will examine what online identity theft is, the current situation and where we go from here, as users and industry attempt to reduce the risks.
Identity theft
Identity theft (or impersonation fraud), whether on or offline, is the misuse of the identity (such as the name, date of birth, current address or previous addresses) of another person without their knowledge or
consent.
Obtaining someone?s personal details is not a criminal offence, nor is creating fake utility bills or bank statements that can be used to prove you are that person. An offence is only committed when someone attempts to use the stolen identity to obtain goods or services ? identity fraud.
Identity fraud is a lot more common than most people think, with a quarter of UK adults having either been the victim of such fraud or know someone who has ? according to CIFAS, there were 137,000 cases
during 2005, a 14 per cent increase over 2004. The Home Office estimates identity fraud to cost £1.7 billion or £35 per adult per year, compared with £1.3 billion in 2002.
There are numerous ways in which identities can be stolen, the most
common of which are:
? Bin raiding ? Unskilled fraudsters retrieve documents such as bank statements, utility bills or even junk mail that you have thrown away. The information obtained can be used to apply for credit in your name
? Phishing ? Fraudulent e-mails pretending to be from your bank asking for your account details. Once obtained these details are used to operate accounts fraudulently.
? Skimming ? Cloning of payment cards using devices bolted onto cash machines, or copied by unscrupulous individuals with access to credit/debit card, for example, staff in restaurants or petrol stations
? Moving house ? Mail still being delivered to your old address can be used to set up finance agreements in your name
? Social engineering ? Inadvertent revealing personal information through lottery scams or cold calling.
However, while public awareness of the dangers of identity theft increased during 2005, publicity centered mostly on the risks posed by offline fraud, such as throwing identifying documents like utility bills in the bin.
The 90 per cent increase in document shredder sales during 2005 shows how well the ?shred your documents? message from the Home Office, police and industry has been promoted. However, stealing documents from people?s rubbish is only one of the ways that criminals can steal your identity. The personal details of most individuals may be more easily stolen using the internet than offline.
WEBMASTERS note..............................
I have attached a full report on this issue below, this goes into details of the what, how and prevention.
