Another big cyber-threat really concerns Internet users. It’s called « identity theft ». This pretty new phenomenon has dangerously increased, few years ago, and according to the
Federal Trade Comission, more than 9 million of american have their identities stolen each year.
What is identity theft ?
It’s when a bad guy steal your identity, in order to create bank accounts, or to rent flat… And he will pay with these accounts or live in this flat without being actually responsible for them. Because you are. And one day, a debt collector visit you and ask for money, needed to revocer debts you weren’t aware 1 hour ago…
As you see, identity theft can cause really big damages in many lives… and according to me it is one of the most threatening cyber-crimes. The problem with the Internet is that you are always asked to give very personal information about you (where you live, what is your name, you social security number…). And sometimes, people don’t care enough about telling these information, for example on MSN, Facebook, and other social networks !
My advice to avoid identity theft is really simple : like in the real world, don’t say everything to everybody… especially when you don’t know who « everybody » is !!!
To learn more about this subject, click here.
