Identity Theft Foundations

It can lead to years of burden for victims.

With enough stolen data (such as national ID numbers, full names, home addresses, and more), scammers can commit a wide variety of fraud using the victim’s identity. As examples, they could open accounts in the victim’s name, file fake tax returns, and commit crimes under the victim’s identity.

There are many different types of identity theft.

Here are a few examples:

• Medical: The attacker seeks medical care under the stolen identity of another person
• Business: The attacker poses as an owner or executive to leverage their organization’s
  credit for financial gain
• Child: The attacker uses a minor’s information to open a new account or line of credit
• Synthetic: The attacker creates a fake person using someone’s legitimate national ID
  number

It’s often made possible by data breaches.

A data breach is any scenario where highly confidential information gets leaked or stolen from an organization or other entity. Some of the biggest breaches in history have resulted in millions of people having their personal data leaked online and made available to cybercriminals.

The frequency of this crime has dramatically increased.

Identity theft is more prevalent than ever before due to the widespread collection of personal data. Additionally, modern services like E-commerce websites and mobile payment apps have provided criminal hackers with an abundance of options to steal data. This has led to a significant increase in fraud and theft.

You can help prevent it.

Personal data carries a lot of power and needs to be protected. You can help keep this data safe by always following policies, treating requests for information with skepticism, and staying alert for anything suspicious. These simple actions help protect the integrity of your organization and the privacy of individuals.

Social Engineering
Social engineering is the use of deception to trick people into making a bad decision, often through emotional manipulation. For example, a social engineer will impersonate a bank representative and ask the target to confirm their account details over the phone.

Did you know? Almost every scam you might encounter, at work or at home, involves some form of social engineering.

Malware
Malware stands for malicious software, which refers to any sort of code or program that alters the functionality of devices. It’s commonly used to steal data and transmit it back to the attacker. Some versions of malware can hide themselves and go undetected for months or even years.

Did you know? Mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, are just as vulnerable to infections as traditional computers.

Phishing
The top tool in the social engineering playbook, phishing attempts to lure you into making a bad decision. Many come via email and feature malicious links that can spread malware or direct you to a website that asks you to confirm personal details.

Did you know? While phishing is commonly associated with email, attackers also use text messages and phone calls to phish people.

Data Breaches
Many data breaches result in endless amounts of personal information finding a home on the dark web — a subset of the World Wide Web known for illegal activities. It’s where cybercriminals can buy stolen data and use it to steal identities or commit other types of fraud.

Did you know? A lot of data breaches are caused by human error, such as someone clicking on a malicious link or failing to update software.