U.S. Justice Department indicts international ATM hacking ring

Posted by Caitlin on November 11th, 2009

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Yesterday, the U.S. Justice Department indicted eight men who allegedly hacked into a computer system at RBS WorldPay Inc., cloned prepaid ATM cards, and used them to withdraw $9 million from 2,100 ATMs in 280 cities around the world, in less than 12 hours. The prepaid ATM cards that they cloned were payroll debit cards that companies issue to their employees. The hackers raised the maximum withdrawal amounts and attempted to destroy data in order to remove evidence of the breach. Charges against the hackers include wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. One of the accused has been arrested and is awaiting extradition from Estonia, and the rest remain at large. Authorities say this hacking ring is one of the most sophisticated in the world.

According to Shawn Henry, the assistant director of the FBI's cyber division, "More money is stolen electronically or [in] data breaches than through bank robberies." RBS customers have been reimbursed for the stolen funds, but a class action lawsuit is pending against RBS WorldPay, alleging that the company failed to adequately protect consumer data. RBS WorldPay has acknowledged that the breach impacted 1.5 million cardholders, and that 1.1 million Social Security numbers may have been compromised.

There's no way to ensure that your Social Security number or other sensitive personal data remain safe from these types of hackers. But identity theft protection services like TrustedID, LifeLock, and Identity Guard scan the Internet's black market websites to find out whether your information is being bought or sold. They'll also alert you if anyone attempts to create new accounts in your name. To learn more about TrustedID, LifeLock, Identity Guard, and other identity theft protection services, see our reviews and comparison chart.

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TrustedID introduces Identity Threat Score

Posted by Caitlin on October 27th, 2009

TrustedID, our favorite identity theft protection service, has just added a new feature to help determine your personal risk of identity theft. TrustedID will assess millions of records on hundreds of public and private databases and analyze that information for patterns that could indicate if you have been or are about to be a victim of identity theft. Your personal risk will be represented by your Identity Threat Score, a number between zero and 500. That score will make it easy to understand your risk level, and it will also help TrustedID's protection specialists ensure that the necessary steps are taken to protect your identity. Since your financial and personal information is constantly being updated, your Identity Threat Score will be automatically recalculated regularly.

This new feature makes TrustedID's protection even more comprehensive. New TrustedID customers will enjoy this additional layer of protection at no extra charge.

To learn more about TrustedID and other identity theft protection services, see our reviews and comparison chart.

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How medical data breaches happen

Posted by Caitlin on September 30th, 2009

For the past three years, Tennessee doctors have been faxing patient information, including Social Security numbers and medical histories, to Bill Keith, an Indiana businessman whose fax number is similar to that of the disability determination section of the Tennessee Department of Human Services. Keith, who shreds the faxes, has contacted doctors, state officials, and even the governor's office, but the they keep coming, at a rate of five or more per week. This past Friday, the Tennessee Department of Human Services began contacting doctor's offices to inform them of the breach and request that they correct the fax number. Naturally, many doctors were concerned, to say the least, when they were told that they'd been faxing confidential patient information to the wrong number for years.

Identity theft expert Robert Siciliano blogged about the dangers of medical identity theft earlier this week. He described a new rule requiring health care providers to notify patients of any breaches of their medical information. But the fact is, many health care providers don't even realize when a breach has occurred, and in this case, continues to occur on a daily basis.

TrustedID, one of the identity theft protection services reviewed on NextAdvisor.com, monitors your medical records in order to detect medical identity theft. To learn more about TrustedID and other identity theft protection services, see our reviews and comparison chart.

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Does TrustedID cover legal costs to restore your identity?

Posted by Caitlin on April 16th, 2009

The following post in our Reader Question series is an actual user submitted question. To maintain the integrity of the original question, we do not edit or change reader questions in any way.

Q: Does TrustedID also cover legal costs which may occur during the restoration of your identity after ID theft?

A: Yes. TrustedID's identity theft protection service includes a $1,000,000 service warranty, which means that if your identity is stolen, TrustedID will cover many of the costs associated with restoring your identity, up to $1,000,000. This covers certain out of pocket expenses required to recover your identity, including legal fees incurred in the United States, for an attorney who has been approved by TrustedID in writing. TrustedID will also provide you with an on call protection specialist, to walk you though all the steps you need to take in order to prevent further damage to your credit.

To learn more about TrustedID or other identity theft protection services, see our reviews and comparison chart.

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TrustedID CEO writes book on identity theft prevention

Posted by Caitlin on March 18th, 2009

While attempting to recover and repair their stolen identities for the second time in two years, Scott Mitic and his wife realized that there was no easy way to do so, no reliable source of help and information. They also doubted that the measures available at the time would actually protect their identities from being stolen yet again. So a year later, in 2005, Scott Mitic launched TrustedID.

Mitic hasn't stopped there, though, in his quest to help prevent identity theft. Now a noted identity security expert, he recently wrote a book entitled Stopping Identity Theft: 10 Easy Steps to Security. In his book, Mitic aims to empower consumers by providing easy steps and practical strategies to help people protect their personal information. A companion website, StoppingIDTheft.org, provides additional information on the evolving risks of identity theft, as well as providing assistance if you suspect you've been a victim.

John Ulzheimer, president of Consumer Education, Credit.com and CNBC contributer, called Stopping Identity Theft "a must-have for anyone who doesn't plan to spend the next 50 years in a cave."

Stopping Identity Theft is an easily digestible primer the details simple safeguards that everyone can take to avoid becoming victims. These include:

• Scrutinizing a credit report
• Securing your online presence
• Spotting scams
• Shopping safely, both online and off
• Preventing medical identity theft
• Protecting your identity when traveling
• Protecting the identities of kids and elders
• Safeguarding personal but public records

Stopping Identity Theft is available at all major book retailers, including Barnes & Noble, Borders and Amazon.com.

To learn more about TrustedID or other identity theft protection services, see our reviews and comparison chart.

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Does TrustedID protect my children from identity theft and if so, how is it done?

Posted by Joe on January 29th, 2009

The following post in our Reader Question series is an actual user submitted question. To maintain the integrity of the original question, we do not edit or change reader questions in any way.

Q: Does TrustedID protect my children from identity theft and if so, how is it done?

A: Yes, Trusted ID does provide identity theft protection services specifically tailored towards children.

Upon sign-up, Trusted ID will request credit reports in your child's name to determine whether there are any financial accounts, collections activity, judgments or other activity in your child's name. This is really a check to make sure that your child hasn't already been victimized since most individuals under the age of 18 will not have a legitimate credit file with any of the major credit bureaus. Trusted ID will also check Social Security and medical benefits statements to make sure that these accounts have not been breached. On an ongoing basis, Trusted ID will scan the Internet's black markets where personal information is bought and sold by criminals and alert you of any suspicious activity related to your child's personal name has been detected.

The simplest way to begin protecting your children with Trusted ID is to sign up for the family plan. At just $161.49 per year after the exclusive 15% discount for NextAdvisor readers, we believe that this is the best value in identity theft protection for families. In addition to providing protection for your children, the Trusted ID family plan will also provide protection for you, your spouse and any other relatives in your household

To learn more about Trusted ID and other identity theft protection services, see our reviews and comparison chart. You may also be interested in our Child Identity Theft Prevention Guide.

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Data Breach Alert: 100 million possible victims in what may be the largest data breach ever

Posted by Joe on January 21st, 2009

Experts are speculating that a recent breach of a 100 million credit card transactions could be the largest credit card breach in history. The reported number of potential victims is more than twice the approximately 45 million credit card transactions that were breached by criminals that hacked credit card processing systems of TJX, the parent company of TJ Maxx, Marshalls and other popular retail stores.

Heartland Payment Systems, a large credit card processor based in New Jersey, announced this week that hackers had breached the company's computer network and potentially gained access to customer information related to approximately 100 million transaction processed by the company. The breach included information that would allow criminals with the proper knowledge and equipment to create duplicate credit cards.

While Heartland is based on the east coast of the United States, the company processes transactions for 250,000 business located across the country and of all sizes and types.

There is no information available regarding notification of potential victims, although most states do have strict laws that require businesses to disclose data breaches to consumers. Businesses also commonly provide free access to a credit report monitoring service to victims for some period of time following a breach. There is no word yet whether Heartland will be providing free credit report monitoring to victims.

As always, our advice is to act quickly if you believe you or your family may have been a potential victim of this breach. We recommend that consumers review their credit reports in an effort to identify any suspicious accounts or activity. Many credit report monitoring services offer free access to your credit reports and scores when you sign up for a free trial (read our reviews and comparison of credit report monitoring services to learn more). It is also a good idea to keep an eye on your credit card statements and alert your credit card company of any charges that you believe may be fraudulent.

Additionally, we recommend signing up for an identity theft protection service, such as Trusted ID or LifeLock, that can help prevent new fraudulent financial accounts from being opened in your name.

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Do my husband and I need the Trusted ID family plan?

Posted by Joe on January 20th, 2009

The following post in our Reader Question series is an actual user submitted question. To maintain the integrity of the original question, we do not edit or change reader questions in any way.

Q: I have 2 credit cards. my husband has 3 credit cards and we both have ATM cards. We need the family plan?

A: Trusted ID's family plan is the best option to protect your identity and that of your husband. Trusted ID does not only monitor your credit cards, as you point out above, but it also provides a number of other very important features including:

• Setting and renewing fraud alerts
• Monitoring of the Internet and public records for suspicious activity related to your personal information
• Opt out from pre-approved offers of credit
• Up to $1,000,000 in identity theft insurance
• The exclusive Credit Lock service which allows you to process a credit freeze on your credit reports directly from Trusted ID's web interface

NextAdvisor.com visitors receive an exclusive 15% discount, so the family plan is just $161.49 per year and includes a 30 day free trial. Trusted ID's family plan also covers any other relatives that live in your home, like children and elderly parents.

To learn more about Trusted ID and other identity theft protection services, visit NextAdvisor.com.

• Trusted ID offers exclusive 15% discount promotion to NextAdvisor.com readers
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What family members can be included in the Trusted ID family plan?

Posted by Joe on January 19th, 2009

The following post in our Reader Question series is an actual user submitted question. To maintain the integrity of the original question, we do not edit or change reader questions in any way.

Q:  What family members can be included in the same services [with Trusted ID]?

A: Trusted ID's family plan covers any family members that live at your same address.  There is no limit on which family members can be included as long as they live with you.  This makes Trusted ID an excellent option for people that are looking to protect their spouse, children, elderly parents or other family members in addition to themselves.  Trusted ID is our top overall identity theft protection service and the Trusted ID family plan is an exceptional value at just $161.49 after the exclusive 15% discount for NextAdvisor.com readers.

You can learn more about Trusted Id and other identity theft protection services by visiting NextAdvisor.com.

• Do my husband and I need the Trusted ID family plan?
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• Trusted ID offers exclusive 15% discount promotion to NextAdvisor.com readers
• Reader Question: Will my LifeLock or Equifax account also cover my spouse?

I think I have been the victim of identity theft. What can I do?

Posted by Joe on January 16th, 2009

The following post in our Reader Question series is an actual user submitted question. To maintain the integrity of the original question, we do not edit or change reader questions in any way.

Q: I got my social on January of last year and I've been trying to make credit applying for credit cards and they send letters saying that I already have bad credit, and criminal accounts something like that and they call me asking for some payments of the accounts I own, and that I have a loan mortgage. How can that be possible, can you help me to solve this situation? Or give some ideas of what can I do? Thank you I really need help.

A: Unfortunately, it sounds like there is a very good chance that you have been victimized by an identity thief who has opened financial accounts and committed other criminal acts in your name. While recovering from identity theft can be difficult and stressful, it is not impossible. Here are some immediate actions you can take:

1) Contact each of the three credit bureaus and ask them to place a credit freeze on your credit report. There is a small fee in most states for setting a credit freeze, but it will completely lock down your credit file and insure that no further financial accounts are opened fraudulently in your name. Here is the contact information for each of the three credit bureaus:

TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241

Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013

Another option is to set a fraud alert instead of a credit freeze. A fraud alert is an annotation on your credit report that lets potential lenders know that you have reason to believe that you are an identity theft victim. While fraud alerts can be useful in many cases, your situation seems serious enough to warrant a full credit freeze.

2) Get a copy of your credit report from all three credit bureaus. Your credit report will list all the financial accounts that have been opened and reported to the credit bureaus in your name. You can request a free copy of your credit report from each of the credit bureaus when you set a credit freeze or fraud alert. You can also get a credit report instantly by signing up for a free trial of a credit report service like Identity Guard. Once you have your credit reports in hand, review them thoroughly identify any accounts that you don't recognize. Contact the customer support department of each of these suspect accounts and let them know that you believe that the account has been opened fraudulently. Each of these companies will have a different process for dealing with the fraud, but make sure that each of these accounts is closed immediately.

3) File a report with your local police or sheriff's department. Call the non-emergency phone number for your local law enforcement agency and let them know you believe you would like to report an identity theft. You may be able to file your report over the phone or you may have to file it in person.
File an identity theft complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). While the FTC can't provide assistance with individual identity theft cases, reporting your case can help identity patterns in identity theft crimes that can help prevent others from being victimized. You can file an identity theft complaint with the FTC at this website:

https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/

4) Consider an identity theft protection service such as Trusted ID or LifeLock to help you prevent being victimized in the future. Each of these services will help mitigate the risk of future identity theft and may be able to provide assistance with your current identity theft issues. You can see a list of all of the identity theft protection services we have reviewed at NextAdvisor.com.

We sincerely hope this information is helpful and wish you the best of luck in your recovery.

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