Stay safe while you surf
Don't be put off internet shopping but do be aware
Phishing
Is the popular name given to websites and emails that attempt to gather your personal information.
They are looking for usernames, passwords, addresses, account numbers for banks and other websites where they can obtain goods or services in your name. Never respond to an email which appears to be from your bank, no matter how convincing it is. Banks in U.K. and Spain only send information emails and will not ask for any details from you at all. Never click on a link to go to your bank website or any other site which may be used by criminals, it is always much safer to type in the address directly. Even websites stored in your Favourites can be corrupted by these people so again type the address if you are going to your on-line banking site. Internet Explorer 7 and 8 now have a phishing filter built in, it's the small green box at the bottom of the screen that scan across as a page loads, if there is a problem it will block access to the page and say so. See a Fake page You'll find that most of the links are working. This took all of 5 minutes to make, imagine how convincing it could be with a little more effort and without my advertisments..
Pharming
- In this version of online ID theft, a virus or malicious program is secretly planted in your computer and hijacks your Web browser. When you type in the address of a legitimate Web site, you're taken to a fake copy of the site without realizing it. Any personal information you provide at the phony site, such as your password or account number, can be stolen and fraudulently used. This is counteracted by your anti-virus program but only if you keep it updated. I recommend Spybot Search and Destroy and Malwarebytes as protection against this kind of problem.
Credit/debit cards
When combined with the Internet provide a tempting source of income for the thief but are a fantastic way for the rest of us to do business, as long as we take a few simple precautions. First of all when on-line shopping check that the site you are dealing with is secure at the point where you enter card and address details. There is only one guaranteed way to do this with all browsers and that is to look at the address at the top of the page. If the address begins HTTPS it is secure if it begins HTTP then it is not. This page is not secure, look at the address bar at the top of this screen, it should read http://www.mike-carson.co.uk/security. All Browsers have another way of telling you the security status of the page, this is usually a picture of a closed padlock somewhere on the page. Internet Explorer 7 and 8 have it next to the address bar, Internet Explorer 6 has it at the bottom right of the window. If you don't see a padlock or the address does not start with https then do not give any personal information and 100% definitely no account numbers.
If someone contacts you and says you've been a victim of fraud, verify the person's identity before you provide any personal information. Legitimate credit card issuers and other companies may contact you if there is an unusual pattern indicating that someone else might be using one of your accounts. But usually they only ask if you made particular transactions; they don't request your account number or other personal information. Law enforcement agencies might also contact you if you've been the victim of fraud. To be on the safe side, ask for the person's name, the name of the agency or company, the telephone number, and the address. Get the main number from the phone book, the Internet, or directory assistance, then call to find out if the person is legitimate.
Is your identity available globally? Remove the risk.
Most people search their own name on the Internet for fun. But "egosurfing" can have a far more serious function. Peter Hurst, Chief Executive of CIFAS - The UK's Fraud Prevention Service - explains. "It is important for those with Internet access to protect themselves from identity fraud by checking regularly how much of their personal data is available online.
Most people will find that there is no problem. But others will be horrified to see how much information is freely available about them - and will appreciate that this could provide rich pickings for fraudsters."
"If you discover - as a friend did - that your senior school has put on its public website a list of former pupils including your name, profile, home address, home telephone number, work address and job title, then you need to consider very seriously whether you are happy that this information is available globally. In a recent survey of victims of identity theft, more than half had no
idea how the fraudster had obtained their personal details, and it is entirely possible that the Internet may have been one of the sources."
Some local authority planning websites are also implicated. In June 2006, CIFAS highlighted that planning authorities had routinely been publishing sufficient personal details about planning permission applicants that criminals were being gifted all that they needed in order to adopt applicants' identities. New guidelines were subsequently introduced by PARSOL (Planning and Regulatory
Services Online), in collaboration with the Information Commissioner’s Office, in relation to blocking out personal data before publishing scanned planning applications online. The recommendation of the Information Commissioner was that 'the applicant's telephone number, email address and signature should not be visible via a website or other online system.' Peter Hurst comments "It is
very worrying that some planning authorities have ignored that guidance and are still exposing householder planning applicants to identity fraud by their negligence."
Advice
Our advice to individuals wishing to protect their identity would be:
- Use a different browser than Internet Explorer such as Googles Chrome.
- of your name, then on your telephone number, your email address, and your home address, (using inverted commas around each of these in order to make the search as accurate as possible, e.g. “John Smith”). And when searching telephone numbers, use every likely spacing combination, e.g. for an inner London number try “020 799 9999”, “0207 999 999” and “0207999999”.
- Be wary of putting too much personal information on contact websites – even those that are reputable, like Friends Reunited.
- If you find that your personal details are available in a way that you are not comfortable with, then contact the webmaster of the relevant website in writing to explain your concerns and to ask for the removal of your data. Remember to keep a copy
- If the webmaster takes no action, then check the website of the Office of the Information Commissioner (www.ico.gov.uk) and in particular www.ico.gov.uk/what_we_cover/data_protection/your_rights/preventing_processing_of_information.aspx and follow the advice provided.
- If you submit a planning application, either ensure that your agent's details are published online instead of your own, or check that your local authority is aware of, and abides by, the PARSOL guidance. A copy of this guidance can be downloaded from the CIFAS website at http://www.cifas.org.uk/parsol.pdf