Identity theft explained Personal information they may seek to access includes your name, address, date of birth or bank account details. They may then use your credit card, access your bank account, use your personal details, send emails from your email account, or use your identity to commit crimes and evade the law.
name and address. credit card or bank account numbers. Social Security number. medical insurance account numbers.
Identity theft begins when someone takes your personally identifiable information such as your name, Social Security Number, date of birth, your mother's maiden name, and your address to use it, without your knowledge or permission, for their personal financial gain.
Stolen personal information is fuel for identity theft
Many online services require users to fill in personal details such as full name, home address and credit card number. Criminals steal this data from online accounts to commit identity theft, such as using the victim's credit card or taking loans in their name.
Physical Theft: examples of this would be dumpster diving, mail theft, skimming, change of address, reshipping, government records, identity consolidation. Technology-Based: examples of this are phishing, pharming, DNS Cache Poisoning, wardriving, spyware, malware and viruses.
The easiest way to become a victim of a bank scam is to share your banking info — e.g., account numbers, PIN codes, social security number — with someone you don't know well and trust. If someone asks for sensitive banking details, proceed with caution.
Searching for a target organization
An attacker might choose their target list through readily available data online, such as employee count, industry, or existing vendor relationships, then narrow their search down further from there.
These hackers use their skills for a particular goal, such as gaining fame by bringing down a computer system, stealing money, or making a network unavailable. Some hackers focus only on gaining notoriety or defeating computer systems, and some could even have criminal intentions.
Scammers will ask you for money.
Once they gain your trust, they'll ask for your help to pay medical expenses (for them or a family member), buy their ticket to visit you, pay for their visa, or help them pay fees to get them out of trouble. They may even offer to help you get started in cryptocurrency investing.
Identity theft is when someone uses another person's financial or personal data, usually for monetary gain. This means a fraudster may take sensitive information like names, birthdates, Social Security numbers, driver's license details, addresses, and bank account numbers or credit card numbers.
Your identity can be stolen if a thief accesses your personal information, including from any document that contains information about you. Even if a thief only accesses a small amount of your personal information, they may be able to steal your identity if they can find out more about you from public sources.
If you gave the fraudster your bank account number or routing number, contact your bank or credit union immediately. You may need to close the account and open a new one. Social security number. Go ahead with a fraud alert or credit freeze and report your information stolen at the FTC's identitytheft.gov website.
Phishing for passwords
Phishing is one of the most common ways that hackers gain access to other people's login data. Phishing emails often contain links that lead to fake websites designed to trick you into entering your password.
Hackers often go after financial institutions because of the opportunity to gain access to personal financial information. Additionally, they may try to gain access to accounts such as credit cards or investment portfolios. Common attacks in this industry include ransomware, server outages and data breaches.
Unfortunately, some attackers want to steal your data just to prove that they can. They are not motivated by monetary gain, access to free resources or the ability to steal your users' identities. They simply want to prove to themselves – and their hacker friends, perhaps – that they can break past your defenses.
These are some signs to look out for: Unusual bills or charges that you don't recognise appear on your bank statement. Mail that you're expecting doesn't arrive. You get calls or texts about products and services you've never used.
Contact your police department, report the crime and obtain a police report. Decide whether you want to place a security freeze on your credit report.
Highlights: There are a number of ways identity thieves may obtain your personal information. Fraudsters may dig through mail or trash in search of credit card or bank statements. Unsecured web sites or public Wi-Fi may allow identity thieves to access your information electronically.
This can happen through a variety of means, including hacking, fraud and trickery, phishing scams, mail theft, and data breaches. Data breaches are among the most common ways identity thieves collect personal data.