ATMs are under siege more than ever from skimming: 4 tips to protect you from ATM thieves
ATMs are under siege more than ever from skimming. Skimming, where ATM thieves steal your PIN and account number using remote devices, is increasing dramatically. Often done by sophisticated crime rings from the Eastern bloc countries, ATM skimming is becoming a high-tech art that’s hard to detect.
That’s bad news for consumers. Experts say that losses from skimming are approaching $1 billion. Nearly one in five fraud victims reported having their credit card PIN or debit card ATM PIN information stolen in 2009, according to Javelin Strategy & Research. And Robert Vamosi, an analyst handling risk, fraud and security at Javelin, sees ATM skimming continuing to rise this year and next.
“Consumers aren’t aware of ATM tampering,” he says. “ATMs have 40 years of trust.”
Skimming isn’t new. It’s been around for at least 10 years. What has changed is that the “technology of the bad guy is getting better and better every year,” says Robert Siciliano, a security expert based in Boston. “It’s up to consumers to watch their own backs.”
Typically, ATM thieves use two devices to capture your PIN and card data. One device sits near where you swipe your card and reads the magnetic stripe on your card with your account number. Even more confusing, the device mimics the card slot. “The technology has evolved to a point where the molded plastic fits like it belongs there,” says Siciliano. Devices are even readily available over the Internet for as little as $300.
A camera, hidden from view, captures the PIN. “You can get the data in real time,” says Siciliano. “You can be in your car with a laptop remotely accessing the device.”
Thieves then burn the data onto a blank card to access your money.
U.S. Secret Service spokesman Max Milien wants consumers to be warned. “The public is notified after an event,” he says. And don’t take bank security for granted. Fraud can occur at any bank in any part of the country. Thieves are even sending out false text alerts to get consumer data.
Banks, they say, are slow to adopt anti-skimming measures. When Javelin surveyed 25 banks, four stood out, though, for their anti-theft measures. They are Bank of America, Chase, Citibank and Wells Fargo.
Experts add that debit card users are most at risk. Typically, consumers must report fraudulent charges within two days, limiting your liability to $50. If you report ATM skimming fraud within 60 days, you’re liable for the first $500 of any transaction. Siciliano adds that thieves carefully orchestrate ATM withdrawals, maxing out cash withdrawals one day and waiting until after midnight for the next stash, which quickly adds up.
Here are four tips to help you protect your account.
1. Cover your password with your hand
Hidden cameras are disguised so they can pick up your password. By protecting it, ATM thieves can’t access your account.
2. Use familiar ATMs and limit your visits
ATMs in dimly lighted spots or used late at night could be more susceptible to fraud, while ATMs under video surveillance can be safer. Stay away from ATMs at retail stores or restaurants, adds Siciliano. Recently, skimming devices were found on ATMs in a popular grocery store in central Florida. Airports, convenience stores or kiosks are equally vulnerable to ATM thieves. Still, even highly trafficked ATMs outside a bank branch have been targeted by thieves.
Also, try to limit your visits to the ATM. “With frequency, there’s risk,” says Siciliano.
3. Check bank balances frequently
Given the two-day window for reporting fraud, it pays to check your account frequently. If you don’t report fraud within 60 days, you have unlimited liability. “Sign up for alerts and notice unusual withdrawals,” says Vamosi.
With credit cards there are more protections in place, and you can dispute charges.”You have at least a billing cycle,” says Siciliano.
4. Observe the ATM
Vamosi cautions consumers to look at an ATM to make sure a card slot is “legitimate and not tacked on.” Look for things that strike you, he says. “Some people have felt that when they inserted their card, something went awry,” he says. In that case, try another ATM.
When protecting your account against ATM thieves, “it’s all about awareness, paying attention and understanding risks,” says Sicilano. “There are 400,000 ATMs and every one of them is susceptible to fraud. The speed and convenience of technology has replaced the security of technology.”
Source: Yahoo
7 Things to Stop Doing Now on Facebook
by Consumer Reports Magazine
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Using a Weak Password
Avoid simple names or words you can find in a dictionary, even with numbers tacked on the end. Instead, mix upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, and symbols. A password should have at least eight characters. One good technique is to insert numbers or symbols in the middle of a word, such as this variant on the word “houses”: hO27usEs!
Leaving Your Full Birth Date in Your Profile
It’s an ideal target for identity thieves, who could use it to obtain more information about you and potentially gain access to your bank or credit card account. If you’ve already entered a birth date, go to your profile page and click on the Info tab, then on Edit Information. Under the Basic Information section, choose to show only the month and day or no birthday at all.
Overlooking Useful Privacy Controls
For almost everything in your Facebook profile, you can limit access to only your friends, friends of friends, or yourself. Restrict access to photos, birth date, religious views, and family information, among other things. You can give only certain people or groups access to items such as photos, or block particular people from seeing them. Consider leaving out contact info, such as phone number and address, since you probably don’t want anyone to have access to that information anyway.
Posting Your Child’s Name in a Caption
Don’t use a child’s name in photo tags or captions. If someone else does, delete it by clicking on Remove Tag. If your child isn’t on Facebook and someone includes his or her name in a caption, ask that person to remove the name.
Mentioning That You’ll Be Away From Home
That’s like putting a “no one’s home” sign on your door. Wait until you get home to tell everyone how awesome your vacation was and be vague about the date of any trip.
Letting Search Engines Find You
To help prevent strangers from accessing your page, go to the Search section of Facebook’s privacy controls and select Only Friends for Facebook search results. Be sure the box for public search results isn’t checked.
Permitting Youngsters to Use Facebook Unsupervised
Facebook limits its members to ages 13 and over, but children younger than that do use it. If you have a young child or teenager on Facebook, the best way to provide oversight is to become one of their online friends. Use your e-mail address as the contact for their account so that you receive their notifications and monitor their activities. “What they think is nothing can actually be pretty serious,” says Charles Pavelites, a supervisory special agent at the Internet Crime Complaint Center. For example, a child who posts the comment “Mom will be home soon, I need to do the dishes” every day at the same time is revealing too much about the parents’ regular comings and goings
Source: Yahoo
Gmail Adds Anti-phishing Tool
According to MXLogic.com, Google users can get visual verification of the authenticity of emails from PayPal and eBay by turning on the authentication icon from the Labs tab under settings. You’ll then see an icon that looks like a key to emails from these verified senders.
Gmail spam expert Brad Taylor said that Google added extra protection last year for PayPal and eBay emails due to the high volume of phishing attacks targeting online payments from these services.
“We do that by looking at the ‘From’ header and when it says ‘ebay.com’ for example, it means it really did come from ebay.com. Anything else is rejected; it won’t even appear in your spam folder because Gmail won’t accept it,” Taylor wrote on Google’s blog.
With the addition of the key icon, Gmail users get the visual confirmation that the emails have been verified as “super-trustworthy,” Taylor said.
The anti-phishing verification is limited to just eBay and PayPal right now, but Google hopes to add more senders to the pool of super-trustworthy email.
Protect Loved Ones this Valentine?s Day
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- Stopping Identity Theft, 10 Easy Steps to Security by TrustedID CEO Scott Mitic will be on sale March 15th. More details to follow shortly!
- TrustedID was recently featured on QVC with the renowned financial expert Suze Orman.
- The biggest data breach ever disclosed was announced Tuesday, January 20th. A major payment processor, which claims that 40% of their processed transactions are from restaurants across the country, admitted that tens of millions of credit and debit card transactions were compromised. This data breach disclosure event follows two other data breach events in 2008 in which over 5 million credit and debit accounts were compromised.
?With increased visibility and data breaches compromising more identities, more and more people are turning to TrustedID for peace of mind and the industry?s best identity theft protection service
Mail Carrier Steals IDs
A Carey mail carrier, Marsha A. Billock-Strahm, was arrested this week on charges of identity theft and theft of U. S. mail, reports the Advertiser-Tribune. When searching her home, investigators found mail that was not addressed to Billock-Strahm, along with other stolen property, including jewelry and clothing.
Postal customers in the Carey area who suspect they may have been a victim of identity theft or mail theft are encouraged to review their credit history and to contact the U.S. Postal Service, office of inspector general at (888) 877-7644 or visit www.uspsoig.gov.
| TrustedID?s? mission is to proactively protect consumers against identity theft, especially as identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the United States. Our innovative flagship product ? IDFreeze? – stops identity theft before it ever happens. Secured from identity theft by our 15 points of protection which includes protection for children, seniors, and medical records, over 97% of our customers are extremely satisfied, loyal, and, most importantly, protected, Please Click on following banner to find out more! |
what you should do, If you think you’re a victim of identity theft?
what you should do, If you think you’re a victim of identity theft?
- If the crime involved the U.S. Mail, contact your nearest U.S. Postal Inspection Service office and report it.
- Call the fraud units of the three major credit bureaus and request a “fraud alert” be placed on your credit file. Check your monthly financial statements for accuracy.
Equifax: 800-525-6285
Experian: 888-397-3742
TransUnion: 800-680-7289
- Order copies of your credit report from the credit bureaus to check whether any fraudulent accounts were opened without your knowledge or consent.
- Contact your banks and creditors, by phone and in writing, and report the crime. You may be advised to close some or all of your accounts. At the least, change your PIN codes and passwords immediately.
- Record the names and phone numbers of people with whom you discussed your case and retain all original reports and supporting documents. Keeping accurate and complete records are a big step toward helping you resolve your problem.
- Contact your financial institutions and request they flag your accounts. Instruct them to contact you immediately if there is unusual activity on your accounts.
- File your complaint online with the Federal Trade Commission, or call their Identity Theft Hotline at 1-877-IDTHEFT. The FTC has counselors to assist identity theft victims with resolving financial and other problems that can result from this crime.
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Few Tips for Identity theft prevention
Following are few tips as prevention against Identity theft:
- Review your consumer credit reports annually.
- Shred and destroy unwanted documents that contain personal information.
- Deposit mail in U.S. Postal Service collection boxes.
- Don?t leave mail in your mailbox overnight or on weekends.
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Mortgage Applicants Data Compromised
Mortgage Applicants Data Compromised
Data Loss Source: The FBI arrested a former Countrywide Financial Corp. employee and another man in an alleged scheme to steal and sell sensitive personal information, including Social Security numbers, of mortgage applicants.
Date of Loss: August 1, 2008
Size of Loss : 2,000,000
Affected Individuals: Countrywide mortgage applicants
Geographic Focus: Unite States
Data contained: Personal and account information, including Social Security numbers.
Additional Notes: The breach in security, which occurred over a two-year period though July, was one of the largest in years.
Additional Information: Washington Post
TrustedID? Delivers First Comprehensive, Proactive Family Identity Theft Protection Solution
TrustedID, the leading provider of identity prevention solutions, announced today innovative enhancements to IDFreeze, the company’s flagship service. Now protecting an unlimited number of household family members, this proactive, simple service extends protection to users in more than a dozen different ways, including safeguards for credit cards, social security numbers and medical identities, and is available through TrustedID’s web site (www.trustedid.com) or its toll-free order line (1-888-548-7878).
“Identity thieves are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their methods of stealing personal data, and they are increasing their targeting of the most vulnerable individuals, children and elderly adults,” says Scott Mitic, CEO of TrustedID. “As a result, TrustedID has expanded its suite of services and introduced a new family plan, to help stop identity theft before it can happen and give whole families peace of mind.
In fact, a 2007 Gartner study found that identity theft affects nearly 15 million people each year. And in the Federal Trade Commission’s latest report (2007), more than 10,000 kids had their identities stolen in 2006 alone, nearly a 60 percent increase over 2003. Moreover, elderly parents and adults are more at risk because identity thieves know that seniors do not check their credit as often and are more likely to have savings, investments and good credit.
According to Mitic, many parents don’t know their child’s identity has been stolen until an identity theft has already done damage to their reputation or accounts. “Most kids only discover that their identity has been compromised when they reach majority and apply for credit, try to get a job, a college loan or a place to live. “On their kids’ behalf, parents need to be a step ahead of today’s fast-paced thieves, and we want to make it easy with this new feature of IDFreeze.”
Complete, Easy-to-Use Security
With the busy, on-the-go lifestyles of most families, TrustedID offers a quick, simple solution to protect the entire family and their financial and personal assets. In a matter of minutes, with just a few easy, online steps, IDFreeze provides core identity theft protection, that includes anti-spyware, scanning and monitoring of other personal identifying information such as social security and bank account numbers, medical record protection, and lost wallet services.
IDFreeze now includes the following new features:
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Most importantly, IDFreeze automatically and immediately extends to every household member when registration is completed. This suite of protection is available at $99.00/year for an individual and $189.00/year for families.
About TrustedID
TrustedID? is dedicated to providing consumers with the strongest, most complete and proactive identity theft protection solutions available. Founded in 2005, TrustedID was the first identity theft prevention company to offer credit freezes to consumers. The company’s flagship product, IDFreeze, includes the ability for customers to flag their credit reports at Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion and extends protection services to entire household families. IDFreeze also is backed by a $1,000,000 limited warranty.
TrustedID is recognized by the Identity Theft Resource Center, a national nonprofit organization that educates and works to prevent identity theft. For more information about TrustedID and its services and products, visit us by clicking following banner: