Have you ever stopped to think that even celebrities are victims of identity theft? Hard to imagine, isn’t it? They are popular, we know what they look and sound like, and yet it can still happen to them! We’re not talking about walking in a retail store with a credit card that says “Paris Hilton” on it and trying to make a purchase. However, cyber criminals steal money from the rich & famous.

Back in 2001, CBSNews.com did a story on a man who worked as a busboy at a restaurant and by using the internet and a popular magazine, he stole millions from the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Martha Stewart, Ted Turner and Steven Spielberg, just to name a few.

Police called it a “hi-tech scam of Hollywood proportions.” The criminal was a 32-year-old high school dropout who obviously had a very deep knowledge of how the internet can be misused. It was reported that he used library computers, web-enabled cell phones, virtual voicemail and couriers for six months. Posing as one of the victims, he was able to get his info from Equifax and use credit cards and other accounts to run the scheme.

Wired.com has reported that this man was able to obtain info on over 200 of the “Richest People In America.”

“He’s the best I ever faced,” Detective Michael Fabozzi of the NYPD’s Computer Investigation and Technology Unit told the Post.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 30th, 2009 at 10:46 am and is filed under Articles Concerning Identity Theft. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.