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Identity Theft
..!!! |
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Vasanth
Kumar
got Guru
Prasad's
(victim)
ID
information
like
Xerox of
latter’s
Ration
card or
driving
license
or phone
bill or
anything
which
has
victim
info. He
changes
the
photo on
the
ration
card and
make a
copy of
it
again.
Later,
Vasanth
Kumar
applies
for a
driving
license
on
victim’s
name
with his
own
photo on
it. Now
Vasanth
Kumar
can open
a Bank
Account
with
that
driving
license
and can
apply
for a
credit
card on
his
victim's
name and
address.
Unfortunately
Vasanth
Kumar is
issued
Credit
Card,
thanks
to lax
verification
procedures.
Now
Vasanth
Kumar
uses the
credit
card to
buy
expensive
things
like
jewellery,
mobile
phones,
laptop,
watches
etc.
After a
while,
Guru
Prasad
will get
the bill
from the
bank for
all the
purchases
made by
Vasanth
Kumar….!
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What is Identity
? |
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Identity
theft is
a fraud
that
involves
stealing
money or
getting
other
benefits
by
pretending
to be
someone
else.
The
person
whose
identity
is used
can
suffer
various
consequences
when
they are
held
responsible
for the
perpetrator's
actions.
Identity
theft is
a crime. |
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How criminals steal
your identity ? |
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In most
cases, a
criminal
needs to
obtain
personally
identifiable
information
or
documents
about an
individual
in order
to
impersonate
them.
They may
do this
by: |
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Stealing payment or identification cards, either by pick-pocketing or surreptitiously by skimming through a compromised card reader |
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Remotely reading information from an RFID chip on a smart card, RFID-enabled credit card, or passport |
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Browsing social network (MySpace, Facebook, Orkut etc) sites, online for personal details that have been posted by users |
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Stealing mail or rummaging through rubbish (dumpster diving) |
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Retrieving information from redundant equipment which has been disposed of carelessly, e.g. at public dump sites, given away without proper sanitizing etc. |
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Researching about the victim in government registers, internet search engines, or public records search services. |
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Eavesdropping on public transactions to obtain personal data (shoulder surfing) |
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Stealing personal information in computer databases (Trojan horses, hacking) |
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Advertising bogus job offers (either full-time or work from home based) to which the victims will reply with their full name, address, curriculum vitae, telephone numbers, and banking details |
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Infiltration of organizations that store large amounts of personal information |
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Impersonating a trusted organization in an electronic communication (phishing) |
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Obtaining castings of fingers for falsifying fingerprint identification. |
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What a criminal can
do with stolen
identity? |
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Apply for a
credit card
in your
name; |
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Open a bank or
building
society
account in
your name; |
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Apply for
other
financial
services in
your name; |
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Run up
debts
(e.g.
use your
credit/debit
card
details
to make
purchase)
or
obtain a
loan in
your
name; |
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Apply for
any benefits
in your name
(e.g.
housing
benefit, new
tax credits,
pensions,
health
benefits
etc) |
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Apply for a
driving licence in
your name; |
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Register a
vehicle in
your name
and use it
for crime; |
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Apply for a
passport in
your name;
or |
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Apply for a
mobile phone
connection
in your
name. |
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How can you protect
yourself from ID
theft? |
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The strongest protection
against identity theft
is not to identify at
all - thereby ensuring
that information cannot
be reused to impersonate
an individual elsewhere.
Following are some tips; |
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Safety tips to avoid
Identity Theft |
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Never disclose
personal information to
anyone you do not trust. |
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Do not provide your
information until and
unless you are sure
about the caller. If in
case of doubt you call
them using the bank
phone number. |
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Remember that banks
always ask for specific
characters like last 4
digits of your card |
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Ensure that your
personal documents are
always secure. Your
personal documents
include your bank
account details, credit
cards, driving license,
card receipts, financial
statements and even
utility bills. |
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Periodically peruse
your bank statements to
check for any
transactions that have
occurred without your
knowledge. |
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Dispose of financial
statements, card
receipts and other
personal documents with
utmost care. Tear or cut
into pieces any such
documents before
trashing them. |
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Keep the authorities
informed if you have
lost any personal item.
For example, report a
stolen credit card. |
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Raise an alarm if you
receive a telephone call
or letter saying you
have been approved or
denied credit for
accounts you know
nothing about, or you
receive a credit card
statement for an account
that you never opened. |
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While paying by credit
card, never let it out
of your sight. |
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Raise an alarm if the
card is being swiped
more than required, or
if it is being scanned. |
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In case of a change in
address, ensure to
notify the correct
address to all
recipients who send you
statements to your
address. |
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Always sign up for SMS/Email
alerts while taking a
Credit Card and on
Online Banking
transactions. |
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Always Erase CVV code
from the backside of
your Credit Card. |
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Be Careful while using
your personal details
like your ID, your
Credit Card number etc
in Online Shopping, the
computer you may be
using has SPYWARE or
Online shopping site you
using may be not secure. |
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Never save any
personal information in
your computer or laptop
or under your desk or in C.D’s or in Flash
Drives. |
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Don't carry personal
information such as pin
numbers with you. Just
remember them or store
them in a secured way. |
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Make sure your
letterbox is secured. |
