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Originally Posted by bluesdave
But tw, what idiot would use a public PC to do their broking or Internet Banking, or Net purchasing? What you say is correct, but that is assuming someone would use a Net café, or one of those pcs set up in shopping malls. Surely no Cellar dweller would be that stupid.  |
"Never underestimate the power of human stupidity." - Robert Heinlein.
You do so at your peril.
Symantec reports
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Threats to Confidential Information on the Rise
For the first time, Symantec tracked the trade of stolen confidential information and captured data frequently sold on underground economy servers. These servers are often used by hackers and criminal organizations to sell stolen information, including social security numbers, credit cards, personal identification numbers (PINs), and e-mail address lists. During the last six months of 2006, 51 percent of all known underground economy servers in the world were located in the United States. U.S.-based credit cards with a card verification number were available for between US $1 - $6 while an identity, including a U.S. bank account, credit card, date of birth and government issued identification number, was available for between US $14 - $18.
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This blew my mind. I can get your (or somebody's, maybe not "yours") credit card information for a couple of bucks. An "identity" is less than $20.
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Increase in Data Breaches Help Facilitate Identity Theft
Confidential information used in identity theft is often confiscated as a result of a data breach. During the reporting period, Symantec assessed data breaches that resulted from hacker activity, the theft or loss of computer hardware, and security policy failure. Data breaches and the potential use of confidential information for identity theft can result in a loss of public confidence, legal liability, or costly litigation. The majority of global data breaches affected the government sector, accounting for 25 percent of the total. Government organizations may be considered a prime target as they often store data in many separate locations making it accessible to various people, and thereby increasing the opportunities for attackers to gain unauthorized access.
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It doesn't even have to be your "fault". If your data is out there, it's at risk.