Find out why the latest online shopping craze could mean sharing your identity.
Just as we internet users become more savvy about protecting our personal details online, so the crooks take the threat to our security one step further, setting up trading forums where IDs can be bought and sold online for as little as £1, bank account details for £5 and credit card information for a tiny 20p.
Published today in Symantec’s latest Internet Security Threat Report, this information is shocking to say the least, especially as UK based identity information seems to be the latest ‘must have’ for the criminal fraudster.
Using a combination of internet sensors and information gained by monitoring the communications of known hackers, Symantec reveal that in the past year alone the threat to our online security has increased by 468% with fraudsters now using legitimate websites to capture personal details.
In particular, respected social networking sites are now proving to be a popular stalking ground as unsuspecting members are more willing to give out information that can be used against them.
In what have been dubbed ‘cyber crime supermarkets’ bank account details are most in demand, accounting for 22% of the information up for sale, with high value business accounts going for the highest stakes and lower value personal accounts available for discounted ‘bulk buy’ prices.
Credit cards represent 13% of the black market transactions with European credit cards fetching a higher price than their American counterparts simply because of the relative unavailability of cards in circulation .
Vice president of Symantec Security Technology and Response, Stephen Trilling warned: "Avoiding the dark alleys of the internet was sufficient advice in years past, but today's criminal is focused on compromising legitimate web sites to launch attacks on end-users, which underscores the importance of maintaining a strong security posture no matter where you go and what you do on the internet."
