Q: I recently received an email that supposedly came from eBay
that said someone had attempted to log into my eBay business
account without authorization (whatever that means). The email
instructed me to click a link to re-enter and confirm my account
information to make sure that my account had not been hacked.
Being naturally paranoid I contacted eBay directly and found
that my account had not been hacked and that this email was
actually from someone trying to steal my eBay account
information. Is there nothing that can be done about this kind
of thing? -- Wesley C.
A: The only thing you can do, Wesley, is be thankful that your
paranoia kicked in because you were about to fall victim to just
one of the latest attempts by thieves to steal your personal and
credit card information.
As you discovered, the email you received was not from eBay, but
from someone using a forged email address that gave the
impression that the email was really from eBay. If you had
clicked the link to "re-enter and confirm" your personal and
credit card information, you would have been taken to a website
that probably looked a lot like eBay, but was really a fake site
created for the sole purpose of stealing your information. You
would have been instructed to enter your eBay account
information and other personal information, including your
social security number, checking and savings account
information, driver's license number, and credit card number. In
the end you would have supplied the thieves with everything they
need to steal your identity.
The eBay scam is just the latest in a long line of sophisticated
attempts to steal personal information through online means.
Customers of PayPal, Amazon, Dell Computer, eTrade, Bank One,
and many other online merchants have been the target of such
scams in recent years.
The shear number of eBay customers is the main reason that eBay
has become the most popular target of scam artists trying to
steal personal information from individuals and businesses alike.
As we talked about way back in 2003, thanks to the Internet,
stealing someone's identity has never been easier. At any given
moment, there are thousands of Internet thieves using all manner
of high tech wizardry in an attempt to steal personal and
business information from unsuspecting souls, and many times
they can gain access to this information simply by asking the
person to provide it through fraudulent means, like a fake
email.
While most people are familiar with identity theft, most
business men and women never think about it happening to them,
at least on a professional level. Consider this: if a criminal
can learn your business checking account number or the number of
your company credit card, they can steal far more from your
business than if they had simply knocked down the door and
carted off your desk.
Here are a few ways to protect you from business and personal
identity theft.
· Never give out your first name, last name, business name,
email address, account passwords, credit card numbers, bank
account information, PIN number, social security number, or
driver's license number.
· Change your online account passwords every 30 days. Believe it
or not, a hacker who steals your personal information can often
guess your online account passwords in about two minutes. If
your Charles Schwab online account password is your birthday or
the name of your first born or family pet, count on a hacker
cracking that code faster than you can say "Open Sesame."
· Never provide personal information in response to an email or
telephone call. Just because someone calls and says they are
from Dunn & Bradstreet and need to confirm your business
information does not mean they are really from Dunn & Bradstreet.
· Never give your business credit card number over the phone to
place an order with someone who has called you unsolicited. If
you are interested in what they are selling get their number,
check out their company, then call them back to place the order.
If you think that you have become the victim of identity theft
or think someone is trying to steal your identity or personal
information you should report them immediately to the Federal
Trade Commission. You will find more information on their
website at http://www.consumer.gov/idt
heft/.
For more information on what to do if identity theft happens to
you visit http://www.privacy
rights.org/fs/fs17a.htm.
You should also remember that no reputable online company will
ever ask you to log in and completely re-enter your account
information. Think about it. They already have this information.
Why would they ask you to provide it again? The answer is: they
wouldn't.
Be careful out there.
Here's to your success
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