Warning TV's Watchdog

[SweetRocket]

Sorry to sound so dramatic but I think this is something we should all be aware of.
There was a piece on last night’s Watchdog about identity fraud. People who put personal details on websites such as their date of birth and their address are at risk of having their identity stolen. The following link explains all.

BBC - Consumer - TV and radio - Facebook security

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by SweetRocket

Sorry to sound so dramatic but I think this is something we should all be aware of.
There was a piece on last night’s Watchdog about identity fraud. People who put personal details on websites such as their date of birth and their address are at risk of having their identity stolen. The following link explains all.

BBC - Consumer - TV and radio - Facebook security

its a good point but it is slightly over played as there are numerous other ways of finding out enough information about someone to falsely claim to be them - still its a good idea not to put personally identifiable information on line (though not such a big issue on sites like this where our profiles dont necessarily contain our real names)

my policy is that if i am required to put my real name into a profile i then lie about my other personally identifiably ocupation - for instance by changing my birth year - or lying about my occupation.

we do need to keep it in proportion tho - although the risk is real it is still very low , a much higher risk of identity fraud comes through replying to phishing emails or websites, or having poor computer security allowing worms and key logging trojans into your pc

[SweetRocket]

I must say I find it amazing that people will reply to phishing emails and to giving out personal details to phone calls from strangers. These fraudsters can be so persistant and some people will give in to the pressure.

But there is an epidemic of identity fraud and we are living in an age where protecting our personal information has never been so important.
I can Google my son’s name and up will come his CV with what I now believe is far too much personal information for any fraudster to take advantage off. He lives in Australia with his wife and both of them have recently had their credit cards cloned. On investigation the cloning came from an airline company in England. It’s a mystery how their cards were cloned, they never used the airline and have no idea how it could have happened.

[Tormentil]

Originally Posted by eeyore

its a good point but it is slightly over played as there are numerous other ways of finding out enough information about someone to falsely claim to be them -

Very true and one of the best places to look is the Electoral Roll. If you've registered vote (and its illegal not to), your name and address for that year will be available to any one to see.

[Monkster]

I was half watching Watchdog last night too and it caught my attention when it mentioned id theft.
I think it said that these people go to different sites where you might be members and glean different bits of info from each of them, not just names and addresses but more personal details like DOB, phone number, mothers maiden name etc, enough info to easily steal your identity.
It also warned of the dangers of becoming too friendly with people you don't know but appear to be your friend on-line and therefore unintentionally giving them information about yourself which they could then use.
It did specifically mention sites like Facebook and Bebo though.
It's just a warning I suppose to be a little more careful with what information you put on sites for the whole world to read at the touch of a button, after all you never know who is watching you!!
Not everyone is as nice as us!!

[agrumpycow]

Originally Posted by Tormentil

Very true and one of the best places to look is the Electoral Roll. If you've registered vote (and its illegal not to), your name and address for that year will be available to any one to see.

You can opt out of the publicly available list which will mean it's not so easy.

[badger426]

A good site to use for keeping up with the latest threats is cnet. navigate to the virus and security forum to check up on the latest phishing, scams, etc. Also good for computer problems, friendly like this site as well.

[Jez]

Originally Posted by Monkster

I was half watching Watchdog last night too and it caught my attention when it mentioned id theft.
I think it said that these people go to different sites where you might be members and glean different bits of info from each of them, not just names and addresses but more personal details like DOB, phone number, mothers maiden name etc, enough info to easily steal your identity.
It also warned of the dangers of becoming too friendly with people you don't know but appear to be your friend on-line and therefore unintentionally giving them information about yourself which they could then use.
It did specifically mention sites like Facebook and Bebo though.
It's just a warning I suppose to be a little more careful with what information you put on sites for the whole world to read at the touch of a button, after all you never know who is watching you!!
Not everyone is as nice as us!!

I joined one of these Social sites and was asked my e.mail password i typed it in but i was suspicious after i gave my details so i changed it right away as i thought there could be a risk of inhouse fraud. Take Care all!!!