The risks of identity theft are everywhere

Written by Howard Schwartz
Thursday, 24 December 2009 14:00

Better Business Bureau warns that the holiday season provides many new opportunities for identity thieves to ply their trade while consumers are shopping both online and off.

Javelin Strategy and Research reports 10 million people had their identity stolen in 2008, representing a 22 percent increase over 2007. A stolen wallet can provide a criminal with much more than cash.

Connecticut Better Business Bureau President Paulette Scarpetti says although there are many ways cyber-criminals can steal personal information, the majority of ID theft is committed using low-tech methods.

“There is considerable attention given to online identity theft and with good reason, however there are still pickpockets and crooks that will grab a purse or wallet and make a run for it. Consumers should keep this in mind when walking around a mall or store, or waiting in line to pay.”

BBB recommends taking the following steps to fight identity theft this holiday season:

In-Store Shopping Tips

• Protect against pickpockets. Keep your purse tucked securely under your arm and your wallet in a front pocket or other safer place. Don’t bog yourself down with too many shopping bags.
• Keep receipts in your wallet. Retailers are required to maintain the privacy of all but the last four digits of the credit or debit card used to make a purchase but it is still a good idea to keep all your receipts together in safe place rather than in your bag or back pocket.
• Review your credit card statement regularly. Check your credit card activity weekly during the holiday season — rather than waiting for the statement at the end of the month — in order to catch suspicious charges as quickly as possible and immediately report any irregularities to your credit card company.

Online Shopping Tips

• Confirm the legitimacy of all “trust marks.” You can confirm that certification from organizations such as BBB, Versign or TRUSTe is legitimate by clicking on the seal. A legitimate seal will direct you to the certifying organization’s Web site.
• Make online purchases with a credit card. If the credit card number lands in the hands of ID thieves, remember your Fair Credit Billing Act protection which allows you to dispute the charges with your credit card company.

Fight E-mail Phishing Attempts

• Be extremely cautious when viewing e-cards. In the past, scammers have created fake e-mail notices that claim generically that a “friend” or “family member” has sent them a card. In some cases, victims have clicked on a link that has installed a virus on their computer or their computer caught the virus when the victims installed supposed software needed to view the e-card.
• Purchase anti-virus software from a business you trust. Make sure you update your computer’s operating system, browser program, and antivirus software and install all security patches.

Ex-Mayoral Candidate Charged With ID Theft

A 50-year-old Port Washington man who unsuccessfully ran for mayor of the Village of Manorhaven three times was arrested Wednesday for stealing an elderly man’s identity to obtain credit cards in his name, Nassau police said.

Earl Grenfell

Earl Grenfell Jr. used the personal identification of an 86-year-old Massapequa man to open credit card accounts for his personal use in October, according to Crimes Against Property Squad detectives.

The victim’s caregiver noticed irregularities in the victim’s credit reports. The victim, who lives in Massapequa, is reportedly Grenfell’s father who is suffering from dementia.

Grenfell, a former Manorhaven village code enforcement officer, ran for mayor in 2004, 2006 and 2008 against then-incumbant Nicholas Capozzi, who lost to Michael Meehan last year. Grenfell, a vocal critic of Capozzi, lost in 2004, 2006 and was kicked off of the ballot last year after a judge ruled that he did not live within village limits.

Grenfell was charged with three counts of identity theft. He will be arraigned at First District Court in Hempstead on Jan. 5.

A Man Running and ID Theft Scam Gets Caught Big Time

John Deere purchase unraveled alleged identity theft scam for James Jett, of Byron Township

By Nardy Baeza Bickel | The Grand Rapids Pr...

December 02, 2009, 5:17PM

Jon M. Brouwer | The Grand Rapids PressAccused identity thief James Jett appears before Judge Steven Servaas for his arraignment Wednesday.KENT COUNTY -- When James Jett purchased a $10,000 John Deere Gator two years ago, his credit was so good he qualified for a loan with no down payment and no interest for six months.

The problem, authorities say, is Jett was as much a fraud as his high-flying friend: phantom boat-broker Michael Vorce.

Jett, 31, was arraigned Wednesday on felony identity-theft charges for allegedly posing as another man to purchase the all-terrain vehicle at Fillmore Equipment in Kent City.

The scam unraveled after John Deere Credit started proceedings to get payments or repossess the vehicle, Fillmore Equipment manager John Kacsits said.

"They attempted to contact who they thought was the owner (of the Gator) but he didn't know anything about it," Kacsits said.

It was not the Grand Rapids man's first appearance in court.

Jett was arrested with Vorce in August 2008 in Wisconsin, where police say the pair used an online service to obtain credit files and open bank accounts in victims' names. The two then applied for million of dollars in fraudulent loans, records allege.

Vorce was already under investigation at the time for scamming millions from West Michigan banks by financing fictitious yachts. He has since been convicted and is serving 12 years in federal prison.

Jett was free on bond awaiting his outcome in the Wisconsin case when he was arrested Thanksgiving Day on the local fraud charge.

A hand-written note in the court file indicates the U.S. attorney's office wants to "package" the cases together.

Jett faces up to five years in prison and $25,000 in fines in the local case. During his arraignment before 63rd District Court Judge Steven Servaas, he requested a court-appointed attorney.

Jett, who declined to comment, is scheduled for a Dec. 11 probable-cause hearing.

Jett is a Union High School graduate who received a bachelor's degree in communications from Grand Valley State University in 2001.

In addition to a construction company which was sued for thousands of dollars in billing irregularities, Jett also owned a failed salon and spa that left employees unpaid, court records show.

E-mail Nardy Bickel: nbickel@grpress.com

Health Net Loses Information for 450,000 Clients

The personal information for almost half a million Connecticut residents could be at risk after a portable disk drive disappeared from Health Net six months ago.

The portable disk drive disappeared from Health Net’s Shelton office in May, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said.

Health Net is a regional health plan and the drive included health information, social security number and bank account numbers for all 446,000 Connecticut patients, he said. The information had been compressed, but not encrypted, although a specialized computer program is required to read it.

Health Net officials said they were not able to determine which information was on the disk, so they investigated and learned the information was saved in an image format that cannot be read without special software, but it contained personal information for many past and present Health Net members.

Blumenthal said he’s “outraged” that the company never told customers or police and only told the AG on Wednesday.

Blumenthal is investigating and demanding that Health Net provide consumers with at least two years of identity theft protection, identity theft insurance, reimbursement for credit freezes and credit monitoring for at least two years for all 446,000 consumers.

The state Insurance Department is also investigating and looking for information, including what led to the disc drive disappearing, what information is missing, HealthNet’s security procedures and changes they plan.

Health Net will provide credit monitoring for more than two years, free to all the people impacted who decide to use this service. If customers find suspicious activity between May 2009 and the date the identity protection service starts Health Net will provide assistance. They have not received any reports of data misuse.

“Health Net’s incomprehensible foot-dragging demonstrates shocking disregard for patients’ financial security, as well as loss of their highly sensitive and confidential personal health information,” Blumenthal said. “Personal information is like cash and should be guarded with equal care. Casual and cavalier attitudes toward data protection and breaches are intolerable and must stop.”

"Protecting the privacy of our members is extremely important to us," Health Net officials said in a statement. "We apologize for any inconvenience or concern this may cause our members."

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Beware Identity Theft

Written By Stephanie Granados

When you are watching TV and identity theft commercials come on, do you press mute, change the channel or just roll your eyes and suffer through it thinking, “That will never happen to me?”

Or, are you one of the growing numbers of people who have had their identity stolen or knows someone who has had their identity stolen?

Last week I attended a meeting where Sgt. Ronnie Harlowe of the Houston County Sheriff’s Office spoke about identity theft. Sgt. Harlowe has been with the department for 19 years. Both the FBI and CIA have trained him in this matter.

We were told how the thieves obtain your information, what they do with it, how to minimize your risk and what to do if you suspect your identity has been stolen.

I never really gave identity theft a second thought. I never had a mailbox for my house only, so I never considered that checks could be stolen, washed and rewritten.

I never put much faith in others — it comes with hearing about the ins and outs of the criminal justice system your whole life — but even I never thought my waiter would, much less could, swipe my credit card on a portable card reader and steal my information. Apparently this happens more often than we would like to think.

All in all, I found Sgt. Harlowe’s presentation to be very informative. The demonstrations also really helped me understand just how easy it is to steal someone’s personal information. For instance, he showed us credit cards that appeared to be real, but the magnetic strip on the back held different account information.

I am not only grateful for the information but also for the fact that police officers do care about the community they serve, and they can be extremely helpful.

Stephanie Granados graduated from the University of Texas-San Antonio in December. Six months later she was on her way to Georgia to join her fiance who had taken a job with Frito-Lay. E-mail her at stephaniegranados@gmail.com.

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Smart phone users vulnerable to identity theft while using unsecured Wi-Fi

Researchers at SMobile Systems, a cell phone monitoring and security firm, released a report last week detailing the ease with which online banking information, email logons, and various other sensitive personal data could be stolen from smart phones on public wireless networks.

The technique uses a widely available program called SSLstrip to insinuate itself between the mobile device and the wireless network server, allowing a hacker to monitor all data sent between the two machines. In public tests, the team from SMobile was able to view password information for numerous accounts accessed by the four smart phones that they tested, which included the iPhone 3GS, Nokia N95, Android G1, and HTC Tilt.

The report says that the ease of access to such sensitive data is dependent on two factors. First, unsecured Wi-Fi networks, like those present in airports and coffee shops, are highly vulnerable to unauthorized access. Second, even the most advanced mobile wireless devices are frequently without even rudimentary security programs.

Some experts recommend refraining from checking important information – like personal email or online bank accounts – from unsecured connections or wireless devices.

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Woman gets probation for ID theft that netted her free power from People

A medical assistant who stole personal information from patients and a co-worker and used it to get free power from PPL has been placed on two years' probation.

Danika Smith, 33, of Allentown was also ordered by Lehigh County Judge Kelly L. Banach on Monday to perform 25 hours of community service and pay $2,273 in restitution to her three victims.

Smith was sentenced immediately after pleading guilty to three counts of identity theft.

Upper Saucon Township police arrested Smith in September.

The investigation began in June when township resident Marie Sutera-Wendells reported to police that she received an electric bill for $430 for an apartment at Smith's Fifth Street address on an account opened between April and September 2008.

Police obtained the e-mail address associated with the account from customer records and traced it to Smith's MySpace page.

PPL said the same address had two other open accounts, assigned to Josephina Nivar, who owed $1,217, and Kiesha Kelly, who owed $628. Police contacted the two women and discovered both had links to Smith.

Smith and Kelly had worked together at Lehigh Valley Health Network-Muhlenberg Primary Care in Bethlehem, and Nivar was a patient at Bethlehem Family Practice, where Smith had also worked.

In a July 14 interview, police said, Smith admitted stealing Kelly's and Nivar's personal information and using it to open PPL accounts. Lehigh Valley Health Network officials confirmed Smith had examined Sutera-Wendells while she was a patient at Muhlenberg Primary Care.

-- Kevin Amerman

Copyright © 2009, The Morning Call

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