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Identity Theft

NYC authorities charge 55 in cyber fraud, ID theft ring

Angela Moscaritolo December 19, 2011

The defendants were part of a coordinated operation that resulted in the theft of more than $2 million from JP Morgan Chase Bank, TD Bank, Citibank, Discover and American Express.

TD Ameritrade settles lawsuit over major breach

Dan Kaplan October 10, 2011

While TD Ameritrade maintains that no identity theft resulted because of a 2007 breach, it has decided to compensate customers "in the interest of helping ease" their concerns.

More than 100 charged in ID theft ring

Angela Moscaritolo October 10, 2011

The organized structure of a huge identity theft operation, based in New York, allowed members to make millions in profits.

Seattle men indicted on hacking, fraud charges

Angela Moscaritolo September 22, 2011

Three men in their 30s used low- and high-tech means to install malware to steal banking credentials and credit numbers from dozens of businesses, according to federal prosecutors.

Online ID thief sentenced to 14 years

Greg Masters September 12, 2011

A man who pleaded guilty to wire fraud and identity theft charges received a 14-year prison sentence.

Cybercrime costs $388B annually, report says

Angela Moscaritolo September 07, 2011

The cost of digital crimes now rivals the illegal drug trade, according to a new report from Symantec.

Phisher gets more than a dozen years in prison

Dan Kaplan July 29, 2011

A Long Beach, Calif. man was sentenced Thursday to 12 years, seven months in prison for orchestrating a phishing operation that duped at least 38,500 people, according to federal prosecutors in Sacramento. In September, That Tien Truong Nguyen, 34, pleaded guilty to computer and access device fraud charges for creating fake banking websites designed to trick unsuspecting users into divulging their personal information. Nguyen, who was arrested for the crimes in 2007, sold the stolen data to co-conspirators, who opened up credit lines to make purchases. He reportedly perpetrated the scam to support a meth habit.

Credit card fraudster sentenced to ten years in prison

Angela Moscaritolo July 26, 2011

Rogelio Hackett Jr., 25, of Lithonia, Ga., stole more than 675,000 stolen credit card numbers used to conduct fraudulent transactions totaling more than $36 million.

Hacker pleads after busted with 675K stolen cards

Greg Masters April 22, 2011

A Georgia man has pleaded guilty after authorities found him in possession of more than 675,000 credit card numbers, some of which he obtained by hacking into business networks.

White House finalizes online identity strategy

Angela Moscaritolo April 15, 2011

The Obama administration released the final version of its National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace, the goal of which is to create a so-called identity ecosystem where online transactions are more trustworthy.

Medical ID theft on the rise, says new study

Greg Masters March 15, 2011

Consumers are not familiar enough with the dangers of medical identity theft, according to a Ponemon study released this week.

N.J. agencies failed to wipe hard drives before resale

Angela Moscaritolo March 11, 2011

Multiple New Jersey state agencies left confidential information on computers set to be sold at auction, according to an audit.

Identity theft reigns king again, according to FTC

Dan Kaplan March 10, 2011

For the 11th year in a row in 2010, identity theft ranked as the top consumer complaint filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the agency announced this week. Nineteen percent of the 1.3 million complaints fielded by the agency were related to America's fastest growing crime. Complaints around debt collection; internet services; prizes, sweepstakes and lotteries; shop-at-home and catalog sales; impostor scams; internet auctions; foreign money and counterfeit checks; telephone and mobile services; and credit cards rounded out the top 10. - DK

Red Flags Rule will not apply to certain professions

Angela Moscaritolo December 21, 2010

Services providers such as lawyers, doctors and accountants will not have to comply with the Federal Trade Commission's Red Flags Rule.

Senate votes to exempt lawyers, doctors from Red Flags

Angela Moscaritolo December 02, 2010

Lawyers, doctors and accountants may avoid having to comply with the Federal Trade Commission's new identity theft rule.

Bad medicine: Can poor data security result in death?

Charles Jeter, ESET cybercrime investigator November 29, 2010

Medical records could become compromised during transmission, on the patient's computer, or at any number of multiple points of storage.

Authorities charge 53 in N.J. identity theft/bank fraud ring

Angela Moscaritolo September 17, 2010

The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday charged 53 individuals in New Jersey in connection with a widespread identity theft and fraud ring.

Public-private awareness initiative developed

Angela Moscaritolo August 10, 2010

A survey gauging public awareness over the need for internet safety and security confirms the need for a new national messaging campaign, according to two nonprofits.

Judge halts fraud racket that went undetected for years

Dan Kaplan June 28, 2010

A federal judge in Illinois has ordered the shutdown of a well-orchestrated operation that made fraudulent credit and debit card charges — often for as little as 20 cents at a time — to dupe victims out of millions of dollars.

FTC delays Red Flags Rule enforcement until end of year

Angela Moscaritolo May 28, 2010

The Federal Trade Commission is, for the fifth time, pushing back the deadline for financial institutions and creditors to comply with the Red Flags Rule.

Identity theft and tax fraud ring busted

Angela Moscaritolo April 09, 2010

Several individuals have been charged for their involvement in a sophisticated fraud ring that used stolen identities of the dead to obtain fraudulent income tax returns totaling $4 million.

LifeLock settles with FTC over ID theft product claims

Dan Kaplan March 12, 2010

LifeLock will pay $11 million to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and $1 million to a group of 35 state attorneys general to settle charges that the Tempe, Ariz.-based company made false claims that its product could prevent identity theft.

Trio charged with ripping off gas customers

Angela Moscaritolo March 09, 2010

Three California men each are facing two dozen charges for running a sophisticated identity theft ring which netted them nearly $2 million, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office announced Monday. Albert Jose Gonzalez, 39, of Lancaster, Josue Gustavo Albizuras, 42, of Los Angeles and Cesar Vasquez Echeverria, 28, of Santa Clarita installed skimmer devices on computerized pay pumps at gas stations to steal customers' credit and debit card information. The men, who have pleaded innocent, were arrested Feb. 25 after a three-year investigation by members of the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department and the FBI. — AM

ID theft still on the rise, but victims respond faster

Dan Kaplan February 10, 2010

Incidents of identity fraud and the total cost of fraud once again climbed last year, but consumers are becoming better equipped to respond to the occurrences of theft, according to a report released Wednesday by Javelin Strategy & Research.

FTC allows eight more months for Red Flags compliance

Dan Kaplan November 02, 2009

Enforcement of the Red Flags Rules has been put off again -- this time until next summer, at the request of Congress.

N.Y. bank computer technician charged with ID theft

Angela Moscaritolo October 30, 2009

A New York computer technician has been charged with stealing the personal data of Bank of New York Mellon employees.

Data breach alerts linked to increased risk of ID theft

Angela Moscaritolo October 28, 2009

Consumers who have received a data breach notification letter face a much higher risk of identity theft, according to a recent survey.

LifeLock settles with Experian to not set fraud alerts

Dan Kaplan October 23, 2009

A lawsuit settlement affirms that third parties are not permitted to set fraud alerts with the major credit bureaus.

New ID theft rules may not pertain to small businesses

Angela Moscaritolo October 22, 2009

A new bill, passed unanimously by the U.S. House of Representatives this week, would exclude health care, accounting and legal firms with 20 or fewer employees from complying with the Red Flags Rules.

Survey: ID theft tops list of American's security concerns

Angela Moscaritolo October 20, 2009

Sixty-five percent of American respondents said they were "seriously concerned" about unauthorized access or misuse of their personal information, while 47 percent felt the same about H1N1.