Via EveryCRSReport.com: Justice Department’s Role in Cyber Incident Response August 23, 2017 R44926. “Criminals and other malicious actors increasingly rely on the Internet and rapidly evolving technology to further their operations. In cyberspace, criminals can compromise financial assets, hacktivists can flood websites with traffic—effectively shutting them down, and spies can steal intellectual property and government… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: ID Theft
Equifax hack may have breached personal data on half the US population w/updates
CNET: “…According to Equifax, which released a statement today, the company’s database was breached through a vulnerability on its website, exposing the personal information of an estimated 143 million people, including some in the UK and Canada….Equifax has set up its own program to help people find out if they were one of the millions… Continue Reading
GAO reports continuing security controls for protecting confidentiality of taxpayer data
Information Security: Control Deficiencies Continue to Limit IRS’s Effectiveness in Protecting Sensitive Financial and Taxpayer Data, GAO-17-395: Published: Jul 26, 2017. Publicly Released: Jul 26, 2017. “The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) made progress in addressing previously reported control deficiencies; however, continuing and newly identified control deficiencies limited the effectiveness of security controls for protecting the… Continue Reading
Your Social Security Number is a major target of ID theft – government has yet to implement an alternative
Social Security Numbers: OMB Actions Needed to Strengthen Federal Efforts to Limit Identity Theft Risks by Reducing Collection, Use, and Display, GAO-17-553: Published: Jul 25, 2017. Publicly Released: Jul 27, 2017. “Governmentwide initiatives aimed at eliminating the unnecessary collection, use, and display of Social Security Numbers (SSN) have been underway in response to recommendations that… Continue Reading
Number of Employment-Related Identity Theft Victims Is Significantly Greater Than Identified
Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration – The Number of Employment-Related Identity Theft Victims Is Significantly Greater Than Identified, June 20, 2017, Reference Number: 2017-40-031.”Employment-related identity theft (hereafter referred to as employment identity theft) occurs when an identity thief uses another person’s identity to gain employment. Taxpayers may first realize they are a victim when… Continue Reading
Gov’t replacing Social Security numbers on Medicare cards to protect against identity theft
“What’s the Social Security Number Removal Initiative (SSNRI)? The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015, requires us to remove Social Security Numbers (SSNs) from all Medicare cards by April 2019. A new Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI) will replace the SSN-based Health Insurance Claim Number (HICN) on the new Medicare cards for Medicare transactions… Continue Reading
Social Security Numbers: OMB and Federal Efforts to Reduce Collection, Use, and Display
Social Security Numbers: OMB and Federal Efforts to Reduce Collection, Use, and Display, GAO-17-655T: Published: May 23, 2017. Publicly Released: May 23, 2017 In its draft report, GAO noted that several governmentwide initiatives aimed at eliminating the unnecessary collection, use, and display of Social Security numbers (SSN) have been underway in response to recommendations that the presidentially… Continue Reading
States With the Most (and Least) Identity Theft
“The risk of identity theft in the United States continues to rise. The incidence of such crimes rose consistently over the last decade, from 246,214 in 2006 to 399,225 last year. The rate of identity theft varies considerably between states. Using the Federal Trade Commission’s 2017 Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the… Continue Reading
Paper – Cybersecurity, Identify Theft, and Standing Law
Chou, James C., Cybersecurity, Identify Theft, and Standing Law: A Framework for Data Breaches Using Substantial Risk in a Post-Clapper World (December 15, 2016). National Security Law Brief, Vol. 7, No. 1, 2016. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2938692 “Since Clapper v. Amnesty International USA, many courts have shut the door on victims alleging a heightened risk… Continue Reading
Javelin 2017 Identity Fraud Study
“The 2017 Identity Fraud Study released today by Javelin Strategy & Research (@JavelinStrategy), revealed that the number of identity fraud victims increased by sixteen percent (rising to 15.4 million U.S. consumers) in the last year, a record high since Javelin Strategy & Research began tracking identity fraud in 2003. The study found that despite the… Continue Reading
FTC Releases New Report on Cross-Device Tracking
“The Federal Trade Commission has released Cross-Device Tracking: An FTC Staff Report that describes the technology used to track consumers across multiple Internet-connected devices, the benefits and challenges associated with it, and industry efforts to address those challenges. The report concludes by making recommendations to industry about how to apply traditional principles like transparency, choice,… Continue Reading
Data Breaches Increase 40 Percent in 2016, Finds New Report from Identity Theft Resource Center and CyberScout
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. and SAN DIEGO, Jan. 19, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — The number of U.S. data breaches tracked in 2016 hit an all-time record high of 1,093, according to a new report released today by the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) and CyberScout (formerly IDT911). This represents a substantial hike of 40 percent over the near record high of… Continue Reading
