“Given a choice between dancing pigs and security, users will pick dancing pigs every time.” –Edward Felten

Dancing pigs and identity theft…it would seem the two have nothing in common. But they are related when it comes to Internet use. Surfers will choose fun over keeping their computer and personal information safe time and time again. Users are often tricked into choosing unsafe sites by animation and fancy Flash pop-ups.

In a recent study by computer security specialists, 22 participants viewed 20 websites and were asked to choose the spoof sites. Forty percent of the time, the users chose the spoof or dangerous sites. Some of those sites contained animation like dancing bears, along with a warning, but users chose them anyway. The study proved that visual distraction can fool even the most sophisticated Internet user.

The study shows that even though a person may consider himself computer savvy, he may not be. It also teaches us that we need to pay attention to browser-based clues to determine if a site is legitimate – not the dancing pigs in the pop-up window.

Avoiding identity theft doesn’t have to be that difficult. To determine if a site is legitimate, check your address bar. The link and the site address should match. For example, if you receive an e-mail from PayPal that includes a hyperlink, when you run your cursor over the link, the correct PayPal address should show up in your status bar at the top of the page. If not, the e-mail and site are very likely not legitimate.

Identity thieves often use scams like these to “phish” for your personal information. When you click on the link, you will be taken to an “official” looking site where you are required to enter personal information or update your information. Once you’ve entered the information, the thief makes off with your most sensitive data.

Don’t fall victim to a scam because of clever design or animation

Small business owners suffered identity fraud at one-and-a-half times the rate of other adults in 2009, according to a study released in February by Javelin Strategy & Research. It seems that, due to the nature of small business – most of the work is done by a small number of people – often just one, the owner. It appears from the research that the susceptibility of small business to identity fraud may be attributed to the fact that small business owners often use personal accounts when making business transactions (and vice-versa) and make a larger number of transactions than typical adults. Since small businesses rarely employ a compliance department or on-site legal counsel to monitor its operations on a regular basis, incidents of identity fraud can sometimes go undiscovered for a longer period of time than for individuals or more complex, larger organizations.

The 2010 Identity Fraud Survey Report identified the information most likely to be accessed by identity thieves as:

• Full Name
• Physical Address
• Credit and Debit Card Information
• Health Insurance Information
• Social Security numbers

identity fraud are increasingly using stolen information to open new credit card accounts, on-line and e-mail payment accounts and cell-phone accounts.

Now for the good news.

Increased vigilance by consumers, businesses and government agencies appear to be having an impact on the problem. Many organizations, especially banks and financial institutions have started offering fraud monitoring services, which can sometimes detect account access and payment anomalies, as well as dispute resolution and identity fraud education programs, in most cases offering these services free to customers. Mobile banking solutions allow account monitoring, alerting customers in near-real-time of account activity and possible fraud. These partnerships and increased activism on the behalf of consumers resulted in consumer out of pocket costs dropping to an all-time low of $373 in 2009.

James Van Dyke, president and founder of Javelin Strategy & Research commented that, “… consumers are getting more aggressive in monitoring, detecting and preventing fraud with the help of technology and partnerships with financial institutions, government agencies and resolution services.”

In November 2009, Javelin Strategy and Research conducted telephone interviews with more than 5,000 U.S. consumers to identify and track the methods used by criminals and the impact of identity fraud on American consumers and businesses. Almost 4,800 U.S. adults, including 487 victims of identity fraud, were surveyed via a 50-question phone interview to gain insight into this crime, its effects on its victims, and how the survey findings can help consumers most effectively avoid becoming victims of identity fraud. The survey has been conducted each year since 2003.

A survey of consumers and businesses conducted in November, 2009 showed that while many consumers are monitoring their accounts more frequently using technologies such as on-line banking and mobile alerts, consumer education on protection and prevention measures such as keeping anti-virus software up to date will continue to be important.

Increased vigilance by consumers, businesses and government agencies appear to be having an impact on the problem of ID theft protection. Many organizations, especially banks and financial institutions have started offering fraud monitoring services, which can sometimes detect account access and payment anomalies, as well as dispute resolution and identity theft education programs. The survey determined that efforts to safeguard information by individuals and businesses have helped in resolving cases more quickly and have reduced the overall costs of identity theft for the consumer.

More consumers than ever before are actively monitoring their credit and financial accounts for suspicious activity and fraud and are acting faster when identity theft is detected.

With the exception of consumers aged 18 – 24, many consumers are found to be more likely to monitor their accounts regularly, to take advantage of ID theft protection programs offered by financial institutions and to install protective computer software on their home computers.

Many banks have offered customers more ID theft protection tools to safeguard electronic and traditional banking.

Financial institutions are investing in identity fraud monitoring, software to detect account access and payment anomalies, as well as complaint resolution and education services.

Consumers have become increasingly aware of e-mail scams such as “phishing.”, and less likely to respond to e-mail requests for personal information.

The use of mobile devices allows consumers to review and report cases of identity theft in close to “real-time,” which may result in lower victim costs and faster incident detection times.

The 2010 Identity Fraud Survey Report was conducted using telephone interviews with more than 5,000 U.S. consumers to identify and track the methods used by criminals and the impact of identity theft on American consumers and businesses. Almost 4,800 U.S. adults, including 487 victims of identity theft, were surveyed.

Computer users are mostly careful about safeguarding their information and using strong passwords, even more so when preventing identity theft is a consideration.

But few people realize that there is another threat to identity theft – copy machines.

Copiers that were made in the past few years contain hard drives that record the information that has been copied. These files are stored unencrypted until the hard drive becomes full, and the old files are then overwritten. Some experts say many files are never overwritten and, in an office setting, those files would be easily accessible. All an identity thief would have to do is hack into the copier’s hard drive and harvest the information stored there.

If you use the copier at a library, public copy center or in shared office space, your risk factor goes up.

While this risk may never be done away with, there are things you can do to minimize your risk. Make sure the data modem and fax modem are different. Doing this prevents someone from being able to take the information stored on the copier and easily transmitting it to another location through the open phone line.

Look into purchasing an overwriting or encryption component for your copier. If your office uses a copier that is more than a year old, you should check online and see if a component kit has been created by the maker of your copier to prevent information from being stored either at all or in unencrypted form. Xerox and Sharp have add-on components that can be purchased.

Don’t use public copy machines for sensitive information. Use only machines you are familiar with and where you have some element of control when it comes to monitoring the security risk.

Consider buying your own printer or fax machine with photocopying capabilities if you routinely copy sensitive information for either personal or business purposes. Be sure to purchase one with sufficient security features that either eliminate or encrypt stored information.

Use passwords to protect the information you copy. Create a password for the office copier the same way you would create an ATM pin code. Don’t share it with anyone.

Copy machines are relatively easy to operate and can prove to be an easy payday for identity thieves. So safeguard your information and think twice before you hit that green button.

Your employment records may not be as safe as you think.

Job applications, personnel records and other employment data that should be filed safely away is being taken by identity thieves and used to open credit accounts, apply for jobs and, in some cases, commit crimes.

As the incidents of this particular type of identity theft increase, federal agencies are trying to increase awareness among consumers and employers. Many companies provide little protection of this information, and victims rights groups are lobbying state legislatures to pass laws protecting employee records.

“You can’t really protect yourself,” said Martha Steimel, president of Victim’s Assistance of America. “Anybody who has access to employee files can turn you into a victim. You can be totally mutilated financially by an identity theft perpetrator. It’s scary.”

In a recently released report, the Federal Trade Commission said the top cause of identity fraud is now theft of records from employers or other businesses that have records on many people. About 90 percent of business record thefts involve payroll or employment records, while about 10 percent are customer lists.

There’s not much employees can do to keep their records safe. Social Security numbers, addresses and other data are often kept in paper files or on computers. Anyone who has access to those files, online or otherwise, can steal them. Thieves sometimes take temporary jobs to get into a company so that they can steal information. Others work for third-party vendors who handle corporate credit accounts or provide janitorial staff.

Companies who have become more aware of this type of crime are taking steps to protect themselves and their employee information. They are locking up files and keeping audit trails to document who has reviewed sensitive data, and are removing Social Security numbers from identity badges, as well as bringing in third parties to carry out privacy investigations to make sure their records are not vulnerable.

The lack of attention to identity theft risk in the workplace is changing. Some states, like Georgia and Wisconsin, have passed laws requiring employers to destroy documents containing personal employee data. California has passed legislation barring private firms from using Social Security numbers as identification numbers.

In recent months, the Federal Trade Commission held a workshop for businesses on safe record keeping, and the agency is working with the industry to develop best practices.

Companies are also starting to revamp policies as workers who’ve been victimized sue employers for negligence. A case in San Diego, Calif., in which employees brought a suit against a pharmaceuticals company after they became victims of identity theft, has become a warning for companies all over the country.

In this case, workers sued for negligence, claiming the company had not taken enough precautions to protect their information. The case was settled outside court.

With criminals growing more and more technologically advanced, combating identity theft has become “one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century,” LifeLock CEO says.

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America, victimizing over 10 million people a year and costing consumers and businesses billions of dollars. Millions of people keep financial and personal information on their computers. Thousands fall victim to e-mail “phishing” scams each year. Social networking sites such as FaceBook and MySpace and peer-to-peer file sharing programs have opened up new avenues for identity thieves to access the personal and financial data of individuals more easily than ever.

Identity theft can happen anywhere to anyone. You can have your personal information stolen (and not even know it) while in line at the store, at the gas pump or even online at home. If your identity is stolen, you can spend hundreds of hours cleaning up your credit and struggling to get back your good name.

Todd Davis is the CEO of LifeLock, and he has purposely published his Social Security number in order to highlight the threat posed by identity thieves. Todd Davis relies on LifeLock to protect his name and personal information, just like it does for the approximately 1.7 million others who rely on LifeLock as well. Sure, he’s had his identity stolen and his information used illegally – 13 times in fact – a number which pales in comparison to the number of attempts that were foiled by the protections put in place by LifeLock. His story clearly illustrates the looming threat facing millions of consumers every day. And while LifeLock is doing their part, they cannot do it alone.

LifeLock, the industry leader in proactive identity theft protection, offers a proven solution that works. Although LifeLock has made it very clear that no service can stop 100% of identity theft, and although LifeLock has been leading the industry by continuously developing new and innovative proactive solutions, compromises do still occur – which is why in the last eight months alone LifeLock has provided more than 310,000 alerts to its members.

As a company, LifeLock is doing its best to protect consumers. As a country, a lot of work needs to be done. Unfortunately, identity thieves develop new technologies faster than legislation can be passed to stop them. We need to make combating identity theft a top national priority. Lawmakers at all levels of government must to take the ever-increasing threat of identity theft seriously. Identity theft is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century and it’s going to take a comprehensive public-private partnership to address the monumental challenges we all face.

LifeLock has been recently awarded the highest rating available from the website TopConsumerReviews in their category. This rating comes out during the same time period as their rating from TopTenReviews, another independent online review service.

“We are honored to receive TopConsumerReviews highest rating,” said Todd Davis, LifeLock chairman and CEO. “It is very well documented that millions of people become victims of identity theft every year. Once victimized, it can take months or even years to restore a person’s finances and credit. At LifeLock we work hard to help stop the abuse before it ever occurs. We are committed to offering the best service and the best value to our members and are proud to be recognized for our efforts in helping to protect consumers.”

The rating is definitely a sweet victory for the company. Davis has recently been the focus of negative press and comments, however, the company has proven that they do provide an effective and valuable service. Review our post “LifeLock CEO Responds To Recent Publicity” to view the positive efforts that the company puts forth to protect members and to see how well it has worked for Davis himself.

Millions who become victims of identity theft each year have to use their own time, energy and finances to get their credit back. LifeLock members have a service that will help to stop identity theft and offers support if their service were to fail (Restrictions apply. See LifeLock.com for details).

“You, your identity and your financial information are more vulnerable than ever before, and people need to protect themselves and their wallets” – Todd Davis, CEO of identity theft protection company, LifeLock.

Todd Davis knows what he is talking about.

In 2005, he started publishing his Social Security number on billboards, over the Internet, and in radio and television advertising in an attempt to raise consumer awareness of the growing threat posed by identity theft – and to promote a new way of combating that threat.

In an interview, Davis commented, “I decided to give out my Social Security number, which was a risk worth taking to alert consumers to the rising tide of identity theft. As my story illustrates, identity theft is real, and the thieves growing more and more technologically advanced.”

Amazingly, as a direct result of publishing his Social Security number and basically, “daring” identity thieves to use it, Davis has been a victim of fraud only 13 times. It is not difficult to imagine just how many times thieves must have attempted to use his personal information in the five years since the advertising campaign began.

Davis’ experience since 2005 is an illustration of the threat posed by identity theft that faces millions of consumers every day. And while LifeLock is doing our part to help protect consumers like Davis, the crime of identity theft will continue to grow.

The increasing sophistication of identity thieves is one of the reasons why LifeLock transitioned from relying primarily on fraud alerts to the LifeLock Identity Alert™ system. Not all creditors check with the credit bureaus to validate that the person opening a new account is who they profess to be. LifeLock Identity Alerts are designed to be more comprehensive in scope than fraud alerts. In the last eight months alone LifeLock has provided more than 310,000 alerts to its members.

For years, LifeLock has made it exceedingly clear that no identity theft protection service can stop all instances of identity theft, and although LifeLock has been leading the industry by continuously developing new and innovative proactive solutions, compromises do still occur.

In order to combat the increasing technological advances employed by identity thieves, LifeLock has forged partnerships with AAA clubs, nonprofit organizations such as the National Organization for Victim Assistance® (NOVA), and law enforcement. Since 2008, a nationwide series of free training sessions has been offered through a partnership between LifeLock and FBI-LEEDA (FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Association) to help increase law enforcement’s knowledge base of the crime of identity theft.

Recently, LifeLock has partnered with Symantec Corporation to provide both online and offline protection to consumers. LifeLock, has also forged a strategic partnership with the United States Census Bureau, a leading source of data about America’s people and economy.

“LifeLock is proud to support the 2010 Census,” said Davis. “The information being collected is critical to the country and all residents should feel comfortable providing the requested information. However, we want consumers to be wary of scam artists perpetrating identity theft crimes during this time.”

Without a doubt, identity theft is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century and it’s going to take a comprehensive public-private partnership to address the monumental challenges we all face. LifeLock is committed to educating consumers and working with other companies, organizations and government agencies in an effort to better protect personal information, especially during a time when identity thieves will attempt just about anything to ensure personal information is used illegally to their benefit.