High schools and universities will open their doors again in the coming weeks. Today’s students are savvier than ever, but still one of the most targeted groups for identity theft. According to Javelin Strategy & Research, 18-24 year olds are at greater risk for identity theft because they take longer to detect fraud – an average of 132 days versus 49 days for those in older age groups. Young adults also tend to have little-to-no credit history, making it easier to create bogus accounts. Most generally-published identity theft prevention tips ... Read More

This week has been marked by some very big news stories about social media and the privacy issues related to the ever-increasing amounts of information available about each of us that is posted online through social media. As Facebook announced that it reached 500 million customers – yes, that’s right, half a billion people around the world, making Facebook larger than every country in the world except two – it’s clear that social media is no longer a phenomenon but a way of life for many people. The new normal — like having a cell ... Read More

The Identity Theft Resource Center has released new research citing a 69% increase in data breach disclosures in 2008.   The top reason for a data breach continues to be lost or stolen laptops, but “insider” theft increased percentage wise to nearly 16% of the breaches reported.  Forty-four states and DC now have data breach notification laws, so data breach plans must rising in importance to compliance officers and business managers.  Kudos to the ITRC for the detailed ... Read More

Happy New Year from Me & Me.  Now’s the time of year when we all look to make a fresh start and make changes for the better.  The Identity Theft Resource Center’s report on data breaches in 2007 gives good reason to seek improvement in the New Year.  According to the 2007 ITRC Breach Report, there were 446 reported data breaches affecting just shy of 128 million personal records.  It’s a large increase from their 2006 report, where almost 20 million individuals were affected.  On the positive side, greater attention to privacy laws is ... Read More