Most people are smart enough to NOT give out a social security number on Facebook. However between what you say, your family, friends and colleagues say and post, your profile is becoming more complete every minute. Even your mom or wife posts her name as “First Maiden Last” because she saw someone else do it and it made sense to allow her old friends/flames to find her.

But today with all this personal information readily available there are now rumblings from academia that they have cracked the code and have assembled technologies to decipher all this information and turn it into hard decipherable data that leads to opening new accounts in your name.

The New York Times reports “computer scientists and policy experts say that such seemingly innocuous bits of self-revelation can increasingly be collected and reassembled by computers to help create a picture of a person’s identity, sometimes down to the Social Security number. So far, this type of powerful data mining, which relies on sophisticated statistical correlations, is mostly in the realm of university researchers, not identity thieves and marketers.”

SearchSecurity.com reports that researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have developed a reliable method to predict Social Security numbers using information from social networking sites, data brokers, voter registration lists, online white pages and the publicly available Social Security Administration’s Death Master File.

Originally, the first three numbers on a Social Security card represented the state in which a person had initially applied for their card. Numbers started in the northeast and moved westward. This meant that people on the east coast had the lowest numbers and those on the west coast had the highest. Before 1986, people were rarely assigned a Social Security number until age 14 or so, since the numbers were used for income tracking purposes.

From this point on I’d suggest locking down social media profiles in a way that they are not publicly accessible. Prevent anyone (except those very close to you) from seeing and reading everything about your daily activities, who you associate with and all the names and contact information of all your friends and family.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to Home Security Source discussing cracking the code and wireless security on Fox Boston.

“Lola” the furriest of all beasts is all bark, love and very territorial. When anyone walks within 100 yards of the property she’s barking. If the door bell rings or someone knocks on the door forget it. All mayhem breaks out. If I or anyone enters through a door and she is even a little surprised she goes nuts.

In the event a bad guy was to walk through my door my feeling is he’d end up “sausage.” A dog is another home alarm system. It’s an extra video security system too. They often see and hear what you can’t day and night. Whenever my dog starts barking the first thing I do is check the video surveillance system monitor to see what she’s cracking about.

In the Boston area, it is reported that a German Shepherd thwarted a home invasion.

The key to getting a protection dog is to understand what a protection dog is and isn’t. First and foremost a protection dog doesn’t mean that the dog is a non stop-snarling-growling-aggressive-ready to pounce-rabid animal. Most protection dogs are relatively sublime, but aware. They respond to the call of duty when they sense a reason to.

A real protection dog is one that is trained for such a purpose. Certain breeds are more trainable and often go through a technique called “schutzhund”. German Shepherds, Malinois and Dobermans are breeds that come to mind. Generally, these dogs have what’s called “prey drive.” Prey drive is the instinctive behavior of a carnivore to pursue and capture prey.

Without prey drive the dog doesn’t have much motivation to do much, never mind put themselves in harms way.

My neighbors have these 2 little “Toto” dogs that think they are 125lbs Rottweilers. And frankly, I don’t get to close to them because they act the part too. They snarl and hiss and bark when their “Mom” walks them and they have razor sharp teeth. It’s not the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog.

Ultimately you want a dog that is safe around you and children. Just as important the dog needs to be safe around strangers too. The dog needs to be sensitive to who or what is good, and when there is a threat. A dog that bites for no reason isn’t a protection dog; it’s a lawsuit and a burden.

Do your research to determine what’s best for you and your family. No matter what dog you get, show them respect and they will watch your back.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to Home Security Source discussing Home Security on Fox Boston

Dan Yost Chief Technology Officer of MyLaptopGPS brought attention to the Ponemon Institute, with sponsorship from PGP, has released their “Fifth Annual U.S. Cost of Data Breach Study.” As usual, the report is a treasure trove of great data (just like most people’s laptops are).

The average cost per breached data record rose $2 in 2009, to $204. That’s actually not too bad. The average cost of a breach was $6.75 million, compared to $6.65 million in 2008.

PC World has a good article to summarize, and thanks to lyger at DataLossDB for the pointer.

Not very many businesses are taking serious note of the fact that, on average, they have $6.75 million laptops walking around out there. For those who are, our hats are off.

Here’s an interesting excerpt:

“Overall, 42% of all cases in the Ponemon data-breach study involved third-party mistakes and flubs. In addition, more than 82% of the cases in the Ponemon study were organizations that had more than one data breach in 2009 involving the loss or theft of more than 1,000 records containing personal information. At about 40% of the companies that participated in the study, the chief information security officer (CISO) was in charge of managing the response related to the data breach.”

And how about the maximum data breach cost in the study? $31 million.

That’s a rather expensive laptop, and probably worth a few dollars to protect instead. (Note: the breach may actually have been the result of something other than a lost/stolen laptop, such as a network break-in).

The least expensive breach? $750,000. That beats $31 million, but $750k is still a pretty penny to pay, compared to protection.

Many thanks to Ponemon and PGP for another excellent study.

Protect your identity.

1. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.

2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated and check out my spyware killer IDTheftSecurty HERE

3. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.

4. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing laptop security on The Today Show

Chip and PIN is the name of a government-backed initiative in the United Kingdom to implement the EMV standard for secure payments.

There have been rumblings from Europe over the past year about American based credit cards that solely rely on the magnetic strip not being accepted in the future due to security issues. Australia recently stated they were getting rid of all magnetic strip based cards and going Chip and PIN within the next few years.

Meanwhile ZDNet reports “Researchers at Cambridge University have found a fundamental flaw in the EMV — Europay, MasterCard, Visa — protocol that underlies chip-and-PIN validation for debit and credit cards. As a consequence, a device can be created to modify and intercept communications between a card and a point-of-sale terminal, and fool the terminal into accepting that a PIN verification has succeeded.

“Chip and PIN is fundamentally broken,” Professor Ross Anderson of Cambridge University told ZDNet UK. “Banks and merchants rely on the words ‘Verified by PIN’ on receipts, but they don’t mean anything.”

This new research has shown that a PIN still needs to be entered, but any PIN code would be accepted. That’s not good. The researchers who cracked the code stated that the ability for the badguy to do this in the future is probable due to the fact that the attack itself is “elementary”. That’s got to warm the cockles of organized crime.

The US has not adopted CHIP and PIN and many argue it is due to the costs involved. With 213 million cardholders and 1.2 billion credit cards in the U.S., there’s no shortage of opportunity for carders to maintain their current pace. However, an investment in a flawed technology isn’t wise.

You can’t protect yourself from these types of scams. However, by paying attention to your statements and refuting any unauthorized transactions within 60 days, you can recover your losses. When using any POS or ATM, pay close attention to details, and look for anything that seems out of place. If your card gets stuck in the machine or you notice anything odd about the appearance of the machine, such as wires, or error messages, don’t use it.

Protect your identity.

1. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.

2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated and check out my spyware killer IDTheftSecurty HERE

3. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.

4. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing ATM skimming on NBC Boston

The sheer volume of potential targets coupled with the vast amounts of money to be made has captured the attention of the global criminal hacking community.

Enterprise networks are becoming hardened and they are still vulnerable. Some are being penetrated directly while others are accessed through 3^rd parities such as their clients or end users. Unprotected networks are being sniffed out and data breaches continue.

The organizations that track these breaches are bored, frustrated, hate the industry and offer no good news. Innovation isn’t happening fast enough and new laws and regulations aren’t effective in solving the problems.

PCI and all those who fall under its requirements are chasing their tail. Infighting continues and rumblings of lawsuits against PCI persist.

Law enforcement is getting better at investigating and catching the badguy, but there are far more of them then there are of us.

Between the TJX breach and the Heartland hack there were as many as 224 million credit and debit card numbers hacked. The criminals penetrated the networks “in broad daylight” so to speak, which means they didn’t have much trouble getting in. The hacks may have occurred via unsecured wireless networks, SQL injections or via social engineering though a phishing email with infected links.

While IT security professionals and white-hat hackers are fighting the battle with newer, better, faster, more robust technologies to keep the bad-guy out, the bad guy still gets in via the path of least resistance, which may be human error, laziness or a zero-day attack consisting of something we’ve never seen before. Often it is the former.

New stories keep coming out depicting small businesses losing hundreds of thousands of dollars via online banking hacks and the banks filing suit so they don’t have to pay it back.

I just spoke to 60 bankers at a conference in Las Vegas. Many of them professed to learning a lot. . No offense here, but I am of the belief that nothing I say should be in any way “new information” to anyone in the banking industry.

As we move closer to mobile banking and a dozen new ways to process credit cards we create new opportunity for the criminals and we haven’t tightened up existing vulnerabilities yet.

We are fragmented and all over the place with an incredible array of interdependent technologies that are set up with convenience in mind and security second.

Somebody please tell me to shut up.

Protect your identity.

1. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.

2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated and check out my spyware killer IDTheftSecurty HERE

3. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.

4. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing ATM skimming on ExtraTV

Financial institutions have the most to lose and the most to gain by improving security education of their clients and employees.

A while back I appeared on a local TV show talking about phishing. Amazingly, still, not everyone knows what phishing is. A good friend saw the show and was shocked by what she learned….about her bank.

She received a phishing email and didn’t know what it was. The email asked her to update her account. It was confusing so she called her bank. She spent 20 minutes on the phone with a bank rep discussing her account and the bank could find no record of the communication or any issues with her account. At the conclusion of the call the bank rep said, “I don’t know why you received this email, your account information is in order.” Click.

That night she saw my phishing clip and wondered why the bank never mentioned a single word about phishing. Her bank failed her. They failed to educate her and therefore failed to protect her. She is no longer a client of that bank.

The mindset of financial institutions needs to change drastically when it comes to educating their clients about identity theft and security issues. Old school “sweep it under the rug” don’t discuss it because it will scare people school of thought is dead. People want, need and require information to protect themselves.

The game has changed. People are concerned for their personal security and are hungry to learn. The fact that you or anyone reads this blog is a testament to society as a whole wants to learn. Soccer moms are now security moms. I’ve seen major industry players in the anti-virus space catering to these mommy bloggers and others because they understand the public is hungry for this. Banks, well, not so much.

Engage the public and they will respect you and want to do further business with you.

Linda McGlasson, Managing Editor at BankInfoSecurity.com interviewed me for a segment on this issue. Listen to the Podcast here It requires a login but its worth your time.

Protect your identity.

1. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.

2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated and check out my spyware killer IDTheftSecurty HERE

3. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.

4. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing the lack of security in online banking on CBS Boston

Diploma mills were born along with elearning institutions who are actually legitimate and accredited bodies. Degrees and diplomas issued by diploma mills are frequently used for fraudulent purposes, such as obtaining employment, promotions, raises, or bonuses on false pretenses. They can also be used as a form of fake ID when posing as someone else to gain employment, impersonation of a licensed professional or used to assist as a breeder document leading to “real” fake ID’s.

A fake diploma is an effective social engineering tool used to gain access to your corporate networks.

From Wikipedia “A diploma mill (also known as a degree mill) is an organization that awards academic degrees and diplomas with substandard or no academic study and without recognition by official educational accrediting bodies. The purchaser can then claim to hold an academic degree, and the organization is motivated by making a profit. These degrees are often awarded based on vaguely construed life experience. Some such organizations claim accreditation by non-recognized/unapproved accrediting bodies set up for the purposes of providing a veneer of authenticity.”

The diploma mills often model the names or accredited educational institutions. They may even take a portion of a universities name and make it a part of their own. Such modeling tactics involve using similar logos, color schemes, and designing their websites to mimic an Ivy League school, right down to the .edu web address.

Just like a legitimate college or university, diploma mills may actually require the student to purchase books, do homework and take tests. However, the diploma mill may make it extremely easy for someone to pass. Students in many cases are able simply purchase a diploma no questions asked. Many of these organizations are nothing more than glorified print shops.

As an employer who requires a diploma as official entry to your organization, you must recognize the risks associated with accepting documents that are fake, designed to give the bad guy access to your networks.

Diploma mills and the documents they print can be difficult to detect. However, today, thanks to the Internet, many websites and organizations are publicly “outing” diploma mills.

When hiring and presented with a diploma, search out the name of the educational institution and see what comes up. More effective is to do a search of the name on the diploma then “diploma mill” in quotes. If you begin to see a trend of sites popping up referencing fraud then call your attorney. Someone who is likely to commit fraud of this nature, may cause even more problems when you decline their employment.

Protect your identity.

1. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.

2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated and check out my spyware killer IDTheftSecurty HERE

3. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.

4. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing fraud on Fox News

Botnets are robot networks of computers connected to the Internet that sit in our homes and offices. A botnet is generally banks of multiple PC’s from the 10’s to 10,000’s to millions. There are no hard numbers on botnets but last figure I saw was somewhere between 3-5 million. Another stat is 25 percent of all US based PC’s are on a botnet. That’s just insane. Botnets PC’s are called Zombies. Zombies all generally share a virus in common that allows for a remote control component. The criminal hacker controls the zombies on the botnet via an IRC control server or via a peer to peer network.

The combined power of the zombies on the botnet allows the criminals to commit all kinds of crimes such as denial of service attacks, mass spam campaigns of blasting viruses to millions.

Often botnets are used to store stolen data or to host spoofed websites that collect that data.

Now comes “Sexy Space,” an infected text message containing a link that when clicked downloads a file making that phone part of an mBot. mBots are made up of “Zobiles”. The download then infects the users contact list and in typical virus multiplication fashion, sends the Sexy Space text to them too.

It is believed that infected phones could then be used in similar ways as traditional zombies are. The extra twist with a zobile is its ability to take pictures, video, and used as a covert audio listening device. It can also sniff out wireless connections to the Internet and gather additional data to be used to hack.

History indicates that we are at the forefront of an era in which criminal hackers develop tools and techniques to steal your money using your own cell phone. Fifteen years ago, cell phones were bulky and cumbersome, they had to be carried in bags or briefcases. Then they became chunky, heavy bricks. Calls dropped every other minute. Clearly, cell phones have evolved since then. Today’s cell phone is a lot more than a phone. It’s a computer, one that rivals many desktops and laptops being manufactured today.

Never click on links in text messages unless you are 100 percent sure it’s a legitimate communication from a trusted source.

Follow your phones manufacturers and carriers recommendations on securing your phone. A search on “mobile phone security” turns up options/downloads/security to consider.

Protect your identity.

1. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.

2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated and check out my spyware killer IDTheftSecurty HERE

3. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.

4. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing mobile phone crimes and hacking on the Mike and Juliet Show

Police believe they may have uncovered an international ATM “skimming” ring responsible for stealing money from hundreds of local accounts. Izaylo Hristov, 28, of Ontario, Canada, a Bulgarian citizen, was arrested at an ATM in the Boston area along with Viadiclav Vladevo and Anton Venkov. Venkov had $99,100 in $20 bills in his car when he was arrested. One of them had Dunkin’ Donuts gift cards and American Express cards with post-it notes that had “PIN’’ and various numbers written on them. These cards were used to write the stolen data on, and then used to make withdrawals.

It was not too long ago that I bought an ATM north of Boston from a dude named Bob at a bar and rolled it through the streets of Boston nabbing unsuspecting users who entered their debit cards and PINS. I performed this crazy stunt to demonstrate how easy it is and how vulnerable we are. As a writer/blogger/speaker my primary motivation is to educate and inform, so the public and industry doesn’t get scammed.

Apparently a few more than a few people in the Boston area didn’t watch this on Fox Boston, or this on NBC Boston or read this in the Boston Globe. Because many of them got scammed over the course of the past few weeks. I’m trying here people. All you have to do is pay attention.

You can protect yourself from these types of scams first by covering your pin!! Scammers have a difficult time turning your 16 digit account numbers into cash without the PIN. Consider never using a debit card again, since credit cards are safer. When using an ATM, pay close attention to details, and look for anything that seems out of place. If your card gets stuck in the machine or you notice anything odd about the appearance of the machine, such as wires, double sided tape, error messages or the machine seems unusually old and run down, don’t use it. Don’t use just any ATM. Instead, look for ATMs in more secure locations. Ultimately you must pay close attention to your statements. Refute unauthorized transactions within 60 days. Check with your bank to determine what their timeframe is to refute unauthorized withdrawals. In some cases an can be as early as a week.

1. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.

2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated and check out my spyware killer IDTheftSecurty HERE

3. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.

4. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing the Bulgarian ATM scammer getting busted on Fox Boston

The Internet has made our personal and professional lives very transparent. We now live in the fishbowl. Despite what many will argue, your privacy is no longer fully in your control. Your online identity is also something that others can control, and you need to do your best to manage it. Managing your online reputation and protecting it is equivalent to marketing your personal brand, YOU.

A colleague of mine is an adjunct professor of writing and communications at Boston University. He’s very intelligent and excellent at what he does. However if you were to look up his name on the web you would find some pretty horrible commentary on a professor ratings site from some of his former students, many of which flunked out of his class.

He of course, was devastated. I would be too. When awful things about you show up on the first page of search, that’s nothing to take lightly. Especially if you are submitting applications for jobs, schools, running for office or going out on date for that matter. Anyone who Googles you then sees the negativity.

Recently I was contacted by a consultant who specializes in marketing of consultants. OK, I’m listening. So I get the pitch and it sounded like a great deal. We hashed out all the terms and conditions, I checked her references and was ready to write a check. Then my security instinct kicked in. As soon as money is to leave my bank account and head towards another, I begin to think differently, its how I’m wired. I did a search online of this consultant and the company she works for before I sent the check.

Immediately on the first page of search, reports from the Better Business Bureau, Complaints Board and the dreaded RipoffReport show up. There was also a blog set up by one very upset customer who felt slighted by this company. The blog was started over a year ago and he still contributes to it. This company had 16 registered complaints with the BBB and only 10 were solved. Based on my research and what I had originally thought was a to good to be true offer in the first place, I chose not to do business with this company.

I know that companies with high volume and lots of customers are bound to upset someone. So there is certainly room for error. If you have a million clients and 1500 complaints, you’re doing pretty well. Frankly, as a professional speaker I know that in most presentations I give that 5 percent of the room will absolutely loath me. They may not like my Boston accent, or I look like an ex-husband, or the bully who tortured them in school or simply because I’m breathing. But 95% want me to come back and teach them more. So you can’t please everyone.

Left unattended, the wild wild web and “search” is a relatively uncontrollable aspect of your reputation, unless of course you make and attempt to control it.

1. Register your full name and those of your spouse and kids on the most trafficked social media sites, blogs, domains or web based email accounts. If your name is already gone, include your middle initial, a period or a hyphen. It’s up to you to decide whether or not to plug in your picture and basic bio, but consider leaving out your age or birthday.
2. Set up a free Google Alerts for your name and get an email every time your name pops up online. If you encounter a site that disparages you, Google has advice. Get a Google Profile. It’s free and it shows up on page one.
3. Set up a free StepRep account for your name. StepRep is an online reputation manager that does a better job than Google Alerts does of fetching your name on the web.
4. Go to Knowem.com. This is an online portal that goes out and registers your name at what they consider the top 150 social media sites.
5. Start doing things online to boost your online reputation. Blogging is best. You want Google to bring your given name to the top of search in its best light, so when anyone is searching for you they see good things. Bury bad stuff 20 deep. This is a combination of online reputation management and search engine optimization for your brand: YOU.
6. Get a Wordpress blog with your name in the address bar. Set up a Ping.fm account and blast your blog/Tweets to all your social media.
7. Buy a domain name that is or is close to your real name and plaster your name in the HTML header so it comes up in search.
8. Get a credit freeze. Click on the preceding link and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.
9. Go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.
10. Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Intelius helps to protect your identity. They monitor your credit and they scan the net looking for your data. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker with ID Analytics discussing Social Media Identity Theft on Fox Boston

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