Topic: Identity Theft
Top galleries, list articles, quizzes
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6 men alleged to be LulzSec hackers
Tuesday saw the news that the FBI had identified and charged six men allegedly behind the hacktivist group LulzSec. Who are the men that the FBI says are behind LulzSec's mayhem?
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Tax day 2011: Four ways to protect your tax returns from data thieves
Tax-related identity theft is the fastest growing kind of identity theft. Between 2005 and 2009 complaints to the Federal Trade Commission tripled from 11,000 to nearly 34,000, according to a Scripps Howard News Service investigation. Thieves steal personal information to use for themselves or sell, or they take it to divert a tax refund into their own pockets. Identity theft, as a whole, is on the decline, but the abundance of personal information in circulation during tax season makes it a prime time for thieves to strike. Here are four tips for keeping your information safe:
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Christine O'Donnell under investigation: where six 2010 also-rans are now
Christine O'Donnell, Alvin Greene, and four other Election 2010 losers are keeping busy.
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Identity theft: five simple ways to protect yourself
Identity theft has been around forever. Even in ancient times, impersonators would pretend to be someone they were not – a prince, a long-lost heir to a great fortune, a merchant who had died at sea. The Internet has made the theft much easier. A hack here, a lost flash drive there, and tens of thousands of people can find themselves with false credit-card charges or drained bank accounts. In 2008 alone, 10 million Americans had their identity stolen. Here are five practical tips to keep your identity safe:
All Content
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The Simple Dollar
Five easy steps to going paperless
Taking care of bills and other documents online reduces clutter and cuts down opportunities for identity theft.
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Tax day horror story: taking your money ... and your identity
The IRS is making it a top priority to crack down on the burgeoning tax day scam of identity fraud. In 2011 the agency thwarted $1.4 billion in fraudulent refunds.
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1940 Census data: A treasure trove for con artists?
Data from the 1940 census, released Monday, has excited Americans looking for more information about their heritage. But the information could also help identity thieves.
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Credit card hacked? Four steps to take.
Credit card hackers can send sophisticated looking e-mails and make small purchases on credit cards to test if you're watching closely.
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Global Payments credit-card data breach: How big is the theft?
The Global Payments breach is the largest known credit-card theft from a business or financial institution in the past two years. Last year, data from some 3.4 million credit cards were grabbed.
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AT&T sued over calls for deaf
AT&T didn't put in procedures to prevent fraud by people using stolen credit cards on the Internet-based system, the Justice Department says. Its suit charges AT&T improperly billed the government as a result.
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6 men alleged to be LulzSec hackers
Tuesday saw the news that the FBI had identified and charged six men allegedly behind the hacktivist group LulzSec. Who are the men that the FBI says are behind LulzSec's mayhem?
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Where's my Refund? glitch: When will it be fixed?
A computer glitch has sidelined the 'Where's My Refund' feature on the IRS website. The IRS says the 'vast majority' of refunds are still being processed within the typical time frame.
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Bank of America nixes debit card fees
Bank of America has canceled its plans to charge a $5 monthly debit card fee. The about-face by Bank of America comes in the wake of growing public anger over high banking fees
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Credit cards stolen? Even senators aren't safe.
Credit cards, including US Sen. Daniel Inouye's, were fraudulently used to buy $12,000 in Wal-Mart gift cards, merchandise. Georgia woman charged with using account numbers of credit cards has had her hearing postponed.
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The Simple Dollar
Bank of America's debit card fees
If you are a Bank of America customer and use your debit card to make purchases, should you jump ship?
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Credit cards: set to get a lot smarter?
Credit cards rely on old, fraud-prone system in the US. But Visa moves could be tipping point to turn credit cards into smart cards.
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'BarackObama assassinated': False tweet shows dark side of social media
Hackers allegedly took control of Fox News' Twitter account and posted false messages that President Obama had been assassinated. It's a cautionary tale about social media.
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Horizons
Hackers: Apple attack exposes usernames, passwords
Hackers' Apple attack reportedly breaks into a company server to steal usernames and passwords. A group called Anonymous says the hackers' Apple attack kicks off the next round of its "AntiSec" campaign.
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Horizons
Anonymous temporarily brings down Arizona police websites
Anonymous has again embarked on a reign of cyber-destruction – this time targeting several public safety sites in the state of Arizona.
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What does LulzSec want? Hack of Arizona computers offers clues.
LulzSec has gained renown on the Internet for hacking the websites of governments and major companies with grin. But their hack of computers in Arizona points to political motivations.
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Citigroup hacked: What to do if your account was compromised
Some 200,000 of Citigroup's bankcard customers had their accounts hacked. Most won't be responsible for fraudulent purchases, but cardholders should still take precautions.
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Debit card fees: Will shoppers benefit from new cap?
Debit card fees paid by retailers to banks could plummet next month after the Senate failed to pass a delay Wednesday. Retailers are happy, but that might not help consumers.
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Identity theft on tax returns soars
Identity theft involving tax returns rose fivefold between 2008 and 2010, a new study shows. Taxpayer identity theft typically involves stealing Social Security numbers and filing for refunds early.
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Horizons
How 'cookiejacking' could steal people's Facebook passwords
Cookiejacking could let hackers compromise Facebook profiles, says a computer security expert. But Microsoft argues cookiejacking isn't a high risk threat.
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Horizons
PlayStation Network back online fully around May 31: report
PlayStation Network service may not be completely back online until the end of the month, according to one source. Meanwhile, PSN today remains offline.
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Credit-card fraud: Is Sony doing enough to stop it?
Credit-card fraud scandal has put Sony in the hot seat. Critics say it's not moving fast enough to help customers avoid credit-card fraud.
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The Simple Dollar
A postmortem on tax filing
Tax filing should be made much simpler. Here are a few suggestions of how to do it .
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Tax day 2011: Four ways to protect your tax returns from data thieves
Tax-related identity theft is the fastest growing kind of identity theft. Between 2005 and 2009 complaints to the Federal Trade Commission tripled from 11,000 to nearly 34,000, according to a Scripps Howard News Service investigation. Thieves steal personal information to use for themselves or sell, or they take it to divert a tax refund into their own pockets. Identity theft, as a whole, is on the decline, but the abundance of personal information in circulation during tax season makes it a prime time for thieves to strike. Here are four tips for keeping your information safe:
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$10 million buried in garlic field. Farmer arrested.
$10 million buried, then accidentally dug up, gets South Korean farmer arrested. Police say $10 million buried to hide gains from illegal Internet gambling.
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