A week after health insurer Anthem announced that it was the latest victim of a security breach, the company revealed that hackers had access to tens of millions of customers’ data going back as far as 2004. [More]
identity theft
Boston TSA Agents Find Dozens Of Credit Cards Under Different Names Stuffed Inside Teddy Bear
By 11.21.14
Stuffed animals serve a simple purpose: To be cute and cuddly. As such, they’re imbued with a sort of innocence, so far as inanimate object can be, which is perhaps why someone thought no one would notice if a sweet little teddy bear was stuffed chock full of what could be stolen credit cards. [More]
Reminder: Don’t Post Photos Of Your Paycheck On Social Media If You’d Like To Avoid ID Theft
By 10.29.14
One way to be sure you aren’t sharing your financial information with the entire Internet? Don’t post it on social media by way of a paycheck made out to you. Yes, you should be proud that you’re raking in the dough. But if you want to keep your identity safe, plastering it on the web is not the way to go. [More]
Did Someone At The DMV Steal This Woman’s Identity? Maybe
By 7.16.14
Over on Reddit, one poster in the the /r/personalfinance subreddit shared the terrible thing that happened to his fiancée when she visited her local Department of Motor Vehicles to change the address on her driver’s license. It’s not clear what happened or exactly how, but what they know is that someone issued a new license with her name and information and a different ID number. This person also has her Social Security number. [More]
Don’t Recycle Your Personal Information Into Identity Thieves’ Hands
By 3.24.14
Recycling paper: it’s supposedly better for the environment han tossing your old paperwork in a landfill, so it makes us feel good. All of our old paperwork is a bountiful harvest for someone who isn’t making brown paper napkins, though. If you aren’t careful, your personal and financial information could get recycled right into someone else’s hands. [More]
Family Accused Of Stealing 19 Identities To Buy $56,000 Worth Of Home Depot Gift Cards
By 3.20.14
As the ancient Sumerian saying goes: The family that steals a whole lot of identities in order to ring up a slew of fraudulent charges together, gets arrested together. A couple, their adult children and a daughter-in-law have all been nabbed by cops, accused of an identity theft scheme that brought in $56,000 worth of goods at Home Depot. [More]
Offering Credit Monitoring After A Breach Is Good PR, Not Helpful To Consumers
By 3.19.14
Whenever there’s a large credit card or data breach, the companies to which we entrusted our data rush to offer free credit report monitoring to victims. That’s very nice of them, but is it really helpful when someone has stolen your payment information? Nope, say experts. It may be helpful when other personal info is stolen, but not when it’s your credit or debit card number. [Krebs on Security] [More]
Protect Your Refund: Consumer Advocates Warn Tax Scammers Will Steal Your Identity
By 2.25.14
It’s that time of year again: tax time. While almost everyone is excited for their well-earned tax return to arrive, there’s a group of people ready to take that money away from you. Thankfully, the National Consumers League wants to make sure consumers don’t fall victim to tax ID thieves. [More]
Best Buy Customer Claims Employee Stole His Identity And Used It To Buy Stuff At Best Buy
By 1.15.14
When you use your retailer credit card at one of the company’s stores, it might seem like that’s the safest place to use it. But one Best Buy customer said he feels decidedly unsafe and has lost trust in the store after an employee allegedly swiped his personal information to gain access to his store card. [More]
Report: More Holiday Credit Card Breaches To Be Revealed
By 1.13.14
It’s bad enough that some 110 million Target customers may have had their credit card info stolen, or that some Neiman Marcus shoppers are falling victim to ID theft following a data breach. A new report says there are a few other retailers waiting to reveal the bad news that they too were victims of credit card hackers. [More]
Credit Card Hackers Go Upscale, Steal Neiman Marcus Customers’ Info
By 1.11.14
If you live under the delusion that paying too much at the department store would somehow result in a higher level of security, prepare to have your mind blown. The folks at upscale retailer Neiman Marcus have revealed that hackers compromised credit and debit card information for an unknown number of customers. [More]
Comcast Fails To Stop Scammers From Opening 15 Accounts Using Same Stolen Social Security Number
By 1.2.14
A California woman recently found out she couldn’t open a Comcast account in her name because she owed the cable company a lot of money… even though she’d never been a customer before. She eventually found out that Comcast had allowed people to use her social security number to open up more than a dozen accounts, and then sent a collection agency after her to make her pay for the company’s failure to catch these scammers. [More]
Sylvan Tries To Distance Itself From Learning Center That Left Sensitive Files In Trash
By 8.9.13
Yesterday we told you about the Sylvan Learning Center in Beaverton, OR, that chose to leave hundreds of file folders containing sensitive customer information in a dumpster instead of shredding them. Now, the folks at Sylvan HQ are doing damage control. [More]
It’s A Small World, But Apparently Big Enough To Steal 50 Identities To Fund 17 Disney Vacations
By 7.15.13
Upon hearing that a man stands accused of stealing the identities of 50 people in order to finance 17 Disney vacations, one might think it sounds like a tall order to successfully get away with that many crimes… and also? Is going on 17 vacations with Mickey Mouse really necessary? [More]
Mississippi Takes Man’s Tax Refund Twice To Pay Child Support For Kid He Doesn’t Have
By 5.23.13
It has to feel completely awful to get a letter from the government saying it’s holding onto your refund check. But even worse, as one couple found out, is the feeling of that happening twice. And then there’s this doozy: Tax officials claim the refunds were put on hold because the state of Mississippi twice has said the husband owed back child support payments. Problem is, the couple has never lived in Mississippi and the man hasn’t father a child there either. Not once, and definitely not twice. [More]
ID Theft Not Just Fodder For Wacky Comedies, Also Tops FTC’s List Of Most Complained-About Issues Of 2012
By 2.26.13
The Federal Trade Commission has finally sorted through the more than 2 million complaints filed by consumers during 2012, and once again identity theft identity theft was by far the most griped-about issue of them all. [More]
My W-2 Arrives Ripped Open, Only Tax Cat And I Care
By 1.28.13
Ultimately, we’re all responsible for our own fates. That’s what David learned when an important tax document arrived in his mailbox with his Social Security number and name exposed. It didn’t come in a “sorry we damaged your mail” envelope like most mangled letters do, so he was suspicious. Maybe someone had ripped it open to get his info. Maybe a postal employee had mangled it, but forgot to put it in an apologetic envelope. Whatever had happened, surely the postal service, credit bureaus, and police would have answers for him, right? Right. [More]
Stealing A Credit Card To Get A Nose Job Might Work If The Doctor Doesn’t Take Pictures
By 11.16.12
One Pennsylvania man knew he didn’t have a new nose, but someone else was apparently aiming to improve his appearance because the victim’s stolen identity and subsequent fraudulent credit card paid for a $6,000 nose job. Cops were able to locate the suspect because the medical practice that did his nose had taken photos of the patient before the procedure. Oh, vanity! You are a cruel mistress. [More]
