Statistics show that the volume of new identity fraud cases reported to CPP stand at the highest level since the ID protection product was introduced in November 2004.

Account takeover or facility takeover is still the single most common form of identity fraud reported to CPP, however it is important to point out that from its peak of 50% of identity fraud cases in June 2009, it has now fallen to 35%. The trend seems to indicate that account takeover has followed with the recession.

The latest CIFAS figures seem to show that application of new line of credit decreasing by nearly a quarter in the first nine months of 2009 compared with 2008. The recession has changed the operating practices of fraudsters, so in 2010 a comparison can be made to see if the same type of fraud has increased in as the UK economy begins to recover.

CIFAS statistics for the first nine months of 2009 have seen:
33% increase in the number of cases of identity fraud to over 72,000
36% increase in the number of victims of impersonation to over 59,000

Companies are in the market that offer pro-active protection for identity fraud and theft such as CPP and a relative newcomer Fraudlock. However, it could be that UK consumers are seemingly unconcerned about the risks of this increasing and damaging crime. One could argue that the financial services sector has not done enough to educate consumers but the question of exactly whose responsibility it is will always continue.

IT security and data protection firm Sophos undertook an experiment about identity theft, which revealed that the British public are not being particularly responsible when it comes to offering their personal data.

Sophos hit the streets of Bristol with a video camera, and attempted to illicit personal information from passers-by. During filming, all but one person interviewed gave their full name and a large number shared the date of birth and email address with no comprehension they could be giving these details to an identity thief.

The research was conducted towards the end of National Identity Theft Protection Week - Graham Culey, senior technology consultant at Sophos who conducted the research claims that with more time and effort he could probably have wheedled additional information, such as addresses and bank providers, out of his “victims”.

Insurance giant Zurich has said it had lost a tape containing the personal details of 51,000 UK customers back in August 2008.

The group said the back-up tape was lost during a routine transfer to a data storage centre in South Africa. It said it had no evidence that the data had been used for criminal purposes, but it has written to all customers who may have been affected advising them to take precautions including advising people to speak to their banks and other financial providers.

Zurich UK has offered the 51,000 general insurance customers, who include both individuals and small businesses, free identity theft protection and free protection registration with the UK’s anti-fraud prevention service CIFAS.

The group declined to comment on why it had taken more than a year for the loss of the data to come to light. It went on to say it had appointed KPMG to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter and to help it strengthen its data security procedures.

But it said its own investigation into the loss of the tape had revealed deficiencies in the management of data tape security procedures in South Africa.

Zurich UK has set up a dedicated helpline for customers who are affected on 08000 152 183. Information is also available at www.zurich.co.uk/id.

The Darkmarket forum was an international site where fraudsters brought and sold credit card details and personal data as been shut down, putting a “significant” ring of virtual criminals out of operation, according to the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca). On Tuesday, September 15th the site’s operator, known as Master Splyntr, announced he was shutting the forum. Splyntr wrote on the site, “Recent events have proven that even in our best efforts to expel and deactivate the accounts of suspected LE [Law enforcement], reporters, and security agents, it is obvious that we haven’t been entirely successful.”

The website allowed criminals to exchange information of how to commit online fraud as well as offering details stored on the magnetic strips on the back of credit cards, hardware, personal information and electronic banking details. It had been in operations for three years, and could only be accessed by invitation.

In total, 60 people have been arrested thanks to police international crime specialists infiltrating and identifying users of the website which has been classed as a ‘big success’ by the agency. Included those caught was a Turkish hacker (alias Cha0) who served as one of DarkMarket’s administrators. Cha0 was reputed for selling high-quality ATM-skimming hardware that criminals could attach to cash machines to collect debit card swipes and PIN’s.

Soca said that one of the arrestees had spent £250,000 in six weeks buying personal data which could have been used to make £10m from identity fraud. The deputy director of Soca, Sharon Lemon, called Darkmarket “a one stop shop for the online criminal”.

After the American Secret Service “Operation Firewall” in October 2004, DarkMarket was the only survivor among a handful of crime forums - the top crime site at that time was Shadowcrew.com where the agency used an informant leading to the arrest of twenty-eight fraudsters in co-coordinated raids.

Lord Cyric, an administrator for the DataMarket site, resists the suggestion that this closure markets the end of an era - “That’s what is said about every big board that closes…that is, until the next one.”

We can be sure that the case of cat and mouse between cyber criminals and law enforcement agencies around the world will continue. By providing individuals with knowledge about this form of crime and methods of basic prevention we can only keep our fingers crossed that it does not happen to us.

According to statistics by the insurer Liverpool Victoria (LV=), 1 in 7 burglaries committed last year were solely for the purpose of stealing personal documentation, with 74% of the victims encountering some form of identity theft as a result. LV= believe the trend of this type of burglary is set to rise sharply over the next 5 years.

Credit cards, passports, driving licenses and bank statements are of particular value to thieves. Burglars can sell individual documents with personal details for up to £15 an item, while bundles of documents with the same identity can fetch £150, LV says. According to the report, a credit card coupled with a form of ID such as a bank statement, utility bill or National Insurance number, are highly sought after on the black market as they make it easier for criminals to steal an identity.

John O’Roarke, managing director of LV said: “As the trend for identity fraud increases, we would strongly urge homeowners to take appropriate measures to limit their chances of being targeted by thieves and fraudsters…Homeowners should ensure they store personal documents securely and if possible separately to minimise the risk of ID theft.”

Sykpe, the popular VoIP program hasbecome the latest channel for scareware spreaders to peddle their wears.

Sean-Paul Correll, a security researcher at Panda Security explains in its latest disguise, scareware scams appear as spam messages sent to personal skype accounts posing from the origin account of ‘Online Notification’ claiming to have discovered infection on a supposedly comprised PC.

Once the user has been lured to the link site for ‘more information’, a fake anti-virus scan takes place that alerts the user that their system is packed with malware in an attempt to stir fear and trick people into buying a useless clean-up tool.

One particular ’strain’ of scareware detected by Panda disables all applications apart from the rogueware utility and Internet Explorer. The browser is left operational as it is needed for the victim to hand over payment for the release of their PC usually by providing them with a code to unlock the system.

Google has established a customer search page - www.anti-maladvertising.com - designed to assist customers of ad networks to uncover possible attempts to distribute malware through advertising, a concern highlighted by the recent New York Times rougeware attack

Cyber criminals make millions of pounds convincing online users to download false anti-virus software.

Symantec, the global internet security company believes that over 40 million people have become a victim of what is being termed ’scareware’ scams in the past 12 months.

So far, the firm has identified 250 versions of scareware, with some criminals thought to be earning more than £750,000 a year.

How Do They Do It?

Scareware sellers use pop up adverts designed to look like official advert of well known firms, such as Microsoft, usually when a user browses from one webpage to another telling them their PC has become infected. If a user then clicks on the pop up advert, they are transferred to another site when they can download software to sort out the ‘infected’ PC for up to £60.

This type of scam is very hard for criminal agencies to investigate as the individual transaction amounts are very small. ITE recommends using only legitimate security software that you actively want to download and not act reactively to a pop up ad. The issue is, scareware is a form of malware which cyber criminals can use to search out and acquire personal and financial information which is of growing concern.

Please be aware that you may receive the following email listed below - so far there is nothing to substantiate this information. However, PC users should always be very cautious when downloading or using executables of unknown origin.

Subject: READ IMMEDIATELY AND PASS ON TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW
READ IMMEDIATELY AND PASS IT ON URGENT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

>
> Someone is sending out a very cute screensaver of the Budweiser Frogs.
>
> If you download it, you will lose everything! Your hard drive will crash and someone from the Internet will get your screen name and password! DO NOT DOWNLOAD IT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES!
>
> It just went into circulation yesterday. Please distribute this message.This is a new, very malicious virus and not many people know about it. This information was announced yesterday morning from Microsoft. Please share it with everyone that might access the Internet.

Today is the start of the 2009 National Identity Fraud Prevention Week - a nationwide effort to help in the battle against identity fraud.

Identity Fraud is one of the UK’s fastest growing crimes affecting individuals. Research shows that consumers and businesses are not aware of, or not taking the steps they could and should be taking to fully protect themselves.

There are now a few companies offering an identity theft protection service in return for a small monthly fee or annual charge. There are some basic things you should know and do:

Check your credit report - this is the first place to check if you are already a victim.
Keep your passwords secret - it does sounds obvious but some people have the same password for a lot of things.
Check you bank statements regularly
Shred important documents, don’t just bin them
Never include financial information in e-mails or respond to unsolicited emails the claim they are from a large institution such as banks.

Look at our review table for the benefits of the services available to you.