Identity thieves usually operate in packs, as groups of two or more conspire to commit the crime of fraud. These criminals can be any individual, group or even institution that holds the key to your business’ assets, such as your bank accounts, credit cards and customer lists. The common thread is they have one thing in common: they must be able to make an easy, quick, but profitable transaction to get their illicit cash.
In order to protect your business’ assets, you must first understand the nature of cyber crimes. Cyber theft is a way for hackers to steal information from your company’s database, as well as to access your private communications. If this happens to your business, the personal and financial details of your customers and clients will be at serious risk. To prevent this from happening, you must understand the ways these criminals target business with elaborate identity theft methods.
One of the first techniques these criminals use is what is called spear phishing, which involves a bogus e-mails being sent to you asking for information about your business. The hacker uses this information to attempt to get your personal details. You are likely to receive junk e-mails like this one:
Do not open this message. Immediately call your local police department or the FBI with the number from the e-mail and inform them that you have received this bogus communication. They will investigate it, and if they do find that it is a legitimate request that they check out your records to find out whether it is real or not. Most scammers will tell you that they need your personal and financial information for some “cyber work”, but it is all a lie.
Once they get your personal information, they can go online and create entirely new accounts in your name. The only thing that will remain different from your original account is the site your bank or credit card company has registered. For example, a person who has been scammed might register for the site of a car dealership. Then they can use that account to make charges and then buy the next most expensive model of the car. This is why it is so important to get it back as quickly as possible.
Another method that criminals use is what is known as spear phishing. This involves sending bogus spam e-mails that appear to be from a bank or any other institution. When you reply to this spam you are actually providing your personal and financial information. This can lead to identity theft.
