Feel wary about giving applications access to your Facebook page? Worried one of those quizzes or games might be maliciously harvesting your data? You were right to worry. The BBC had the same idea, so they decided to write a program to do just that. And it worked. Not only did it steal the data of Facebook users who installed the application, it also victimized all of their “friends.”
ID theft
Fake Credit Card Reader Found At California Grocery Store Linked To Thefts
By 4.30.08 — Updated: 10.25.12
A small California grocery store chain and its…
Postal Worker Steals Your New Credit Cards, Goes On Shopping Spree
By 4.22.08
Police have arrested Paul Hank, a distribution clerk at the Smithtown, NY post office, after he stole credit cards from the mail and went on a shopping spree, says Newsday
Watch Out For Scammers Pretending To Be Your Credit Card Company's Fraud Department
By 4.15.08
This should have been one of the first things your parents told you about avoiding scams, but in case they were busy watching TV or something — here you go:
Scammers Want Your Stimulus Check And Tax Refund
By 4.14.08
Phoung Cat Le from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports that a colleague of hers is the victim of income tax ID theft. A scammer filed her income taxes before she did, hoping to get a hold of her refund and stimulus check.
Wal-Mart Holds Your Credit Card and ID Hostage When You Complain
By 4.14.08
When reader Steve went to Wal-Mart to buy Rock Star for his daughter, he reluctantly presented the cashier with a state issued ID containing just his picture, name and signature. Steve’s job is to consult with law enforcement about identity theft, so he’s more careful than the average bear.
Leukemia Survivor Who Had Identity Stolen By Lab Tech Tells His Story
By 4.10.08
We wrote about Eric Drew a few weeks ago—his personal information was stolen by a shady lab technician while he was undergoing treatment in 2004.
Your Credit Card Information Is Worth About 40 Cents
By 4.9.08
You may think that your credit card and banking information is worth a lot of money to potential crooks. If you do, you’re wrong. There’s so much stolen personal information out there and banks are getting so good at cutting off compromised credit cards quickly that it’s driving the price down.
H&R Block Sends You A Refund Check For $5,666.10, Even Though You Haven't Filed Your Taxes
By 4.1.08
H&R Block is an extremely generous company! They’ve sent you a $5,666.10 refund check and you didn’t even file your taxes with them! Isn’t that nice?
Maryland's Dental HMO Security Breach Was One Of Nearly 40 In The State Since January
By 4.1.08
A few days ago we linked to a Baltimore Sun article that investigated the recent accidental release of private patient data online by The Dental Network. Now the reporter who broke the story, Liz F. Kay, has contacted us with news that “this was the largest of nearly 40 breaches affecting Maryland residents” since a disclosure law went into effect in January:
Thirty-nine businesses or groups have reported losses of sensitive information involving about 87,500 Maryland residents in the three months since a state law took effect requiring that people be informed of such incidents, records show.
Prison Officials Lose Flash Drive With Data On 3,500 Volunteers And Visitors
By 3.31.08
The San Francisco Chronicle has reported that “a flash memory drive containing names, birth dates and driver’s license numbers of more than 3,500 people who either volunteered or visited San Quentin State Prison in a group tour has been lost.” Our reader Paul, who sent us the tip, adds, “When I read it my first thought was, “Gee, I wonder what the chances are of this personal data ending up in criminal hands? Mmm, maybe 100%.” Our favorite part of the story: the data wasn’t encrypted, but prison officials have said that now they’re going to start encrypting it.
Hannaford Credit Card Theft Caused By Malware, Not Database Breach
By 3.31.08
Most corporate credit card data theft happens at the database level, like the massive T.J. Maxx breach. But Hannaford has notified investigators that the recent theft of 4.2 million accounts was caused by malware that was installed on the servers at each of its 300 locations. The software “intercepted data from customers as they paid with plastic at checkout counters and sent data overseas,” reports CNET.
CareFirst Dental HMO Exposes SSNs, Says You Should "Take It Seriously"
By 3.28.08
Last month, The Dental Network—a dental HMO owned by CareFirst BlueCross Blue Shield—discovered it had accidentally revealed personal data and Social Security numbers online for about 75,000 of its customers. It told the members about the screw-up three weeks later. “The company says that to its knowledge, no one has misused the information. But it says ‘the risk … should be taken seriously,'” and it’s offering affected members one year of credit monitoring. After that, as you know, the thread of identity theft plummets. Wait, what?
Leukemia Survivor Settles ID Theft Lawsuit With TransUnion; Five More Companies To Go
By 3.27.08
When Eric Drew was in the hospital being treated for leukemia five years ago, a lab technician stole his personal information and began opening up credit card accounts in his name.
Best Buy Keeps Your Credit Card And SSNs In Plain View On The Sales Floor
By 3.26.08
I saw something a little weird at our local Best Buy [redacted]. While on my break from work I decided to stop by the store and pick up the latest copy of Rainbow Six Vegas 2. While walking through the audio section of the Home Theater department I passed by a computer terminal next to some stereo equipment and an open filing cabinet in the middle with a tray on-top. At first I thought it was just storage for binders, pamphlets, sales ad’s and stuff they might need on the floor, but when I looked into the tray I saw completed credit card forms, with peoples names, addresses, social security # and etc…
Don't Want A Debit Card? Key Bank Will Charge You $1 A Month
By 3.19.08
After hearing about Hannaford’s giant customer data breach yesterday, Brian decided to cancel the debit card he’d used there. That’s when he found out that Key Bank really wants you to have a debit card. In fact, they’ll charge you a small monthly fee to not have one linked to your “free checking” account. We figure that this means Key Bank makes about $12 a year more off of customers who have linked debit cards—and that if you want greater security on your account, it’s going to cost you.
