News

• FBI issues warning on hotel Internet connections

  By Michael Cooney | 10 May, 2012 04:47

  The FBI today warned travelers there has been an uptick in malicious software infecting laptops and other devices linked to hotel Internet connections.

• How to fight back against privacy pirates

  By Julie Sartain | 07 May, 2012 21:27

  Have you Googled yourself lately? Is the information about you accurate or full of inconsistencies, both of which can be devastating?

• Identity theft: When millions of dead people apply for credit cards

  By Tim Greene | 24 April, 2012 05:33

  Seems that the threat of identity theft doesn't end, even with death. Identity thieves apply for millions of credit cards per year using personal information of the deceased, a study shows.

• Identity theft reporting system needs improvements, victims say

  By Michael Cooney | 14 March, 2012 01:30

  Unwanted pressure to buy protection services from credit reporting agencies and the inability to speak to a live person when reporting an identity theft situation were the two most annoying issues victims identified in a Federal Trade Commission report issued on the growing problem this week.

• IRS warns of Dirty Dozen 2012 tax scams

  By Michael Cooney | 18 February, 2012 06:33

  The Internal Revenue Service this week issued its annual "Dirty Dozen" ranking of tax scams the agency says tend to surface around tax season each year.

• Cisco's John Stewart on the latest security threats … and what enterprises can do to fight back

  By Susan Perschke | 14 February, 2012 03:17

  Freelance writer Susan Perschke recently sat down with Cisco Vice President and Chief Security Officer John N. Stewart for an in-depth discussion of the state of enterprise security.

• How to get the IRS' attention: Forge nearly $8 million in tax returns, steal identities

  By Michael Cooney | 11 February, 2012 04:28

  A former Internal Revenue Service employee this week got 105 months in prison for pleading guilty to theft of government property and aggravated identity theft in a case where the guy tried to get away with nearly $8 million in fraudulent tax returns.

• IRS helps bust 105 people in massive identity theft crackdown

  By Michael Cooney | 01 February, 2012 08:20

  The Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Justice teamed up for a coast-to-coast crackdown on identity thieves this week.

• NEWS FOCUS: Facebook-safe or Facebook-sorry?

  By Andy Quan | 22 July, 2011 08:50

  How to protect your security and privacy on Facebook

• How secure is your tablet?

  By Hafizah Osman | 01 July, 2011 16:22

  Data breaches cost Australians $US1.83 million in 2009, or $US114 per Australian per year, according to a study conducted by The Ponemon Institute in 2010.

• Identity theft down but cost skyrockets

  By Ellen Messmer | 09 February, 2011 05:53

  Identity theft related to credit and debit cards dropped by 28 per cent in 2010 over 2009 -- but the out-of-pocket cost to victimized consumers rose by 68 per cent.

• ChoicePoint to pay $275,000 for second data breach

  By Grant Gross | 20 October, 2009 09:28

  Data broker ChoicePoint, the victim of a 2004 data breach affecting more than 160,000 U.S. residents, has agreed to strengthen its data security efforts and pay to compensate potential victims of identity theft for a second breach in 2008, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said Monday.

• Identity thieves beat Obama to stimulus package punch

  By Gregg Keizer | 06 February, 2009 09:26

  Although the US government's economic stimulus package hasn't even gotten out of Congress, scammers aren't waiting; they've launched multiple campaigns that tempt users into revealing personal information, a security researcher warned Thursday.