InformationWeek reports, “All the major sites–Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn–have the same minimum password length of six characters. And password complexity checks are few and far between. Facebook and LinkedIn have no complexity checks. For MySpace, some complexity checking is enabled; however, users can enter a password of ‘123456.’ Twitter has a basic complexity check based on a static word list that’s viewable through the HTML source of the login page. You can’t use ‘password1,’ but ‘1password’ is OK.”

Of the 32 million people whose passwords were exposed, almost 1% had chosen “123456.” The next most popular password was “12345.” “Princess,” “qwerty,” and “abc123” were other common choices.

In another instance, phishers posted thousands of Hotmail addresses and the associated passwords in an online forum. These passwords were equally obvious. Those used most frequently included “111111

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Most major websites now install cookies on your computer, which track what you do online. Over time, these cookies develop a profile, which becomes your digital fingerprint, to a certain extent. You may have noticed after searching for a specific product, advertisements for that particular product or brand appearing on various other websites you visit.

The New York Times reports , “advertisers are increasingly using powerful software known as supercookies, such as so-called Flash and document object management (or DOM) cookies, which can hold more information, and Web bugs or beacons, which let sites record statistics like what ads attracted you to the site and whether you bought something. They are not removed when you clear out your cookies.”

The “harm” done here is less damaging than it is invasive. Meaning I don’t see any physical harm or identity theft ever happening as a result of this refined marketing. More so, i Full Article…

Welcome to the official post-Thanksgiving Monday Morning News Kick Off from the ITAC blog. Now that we have all come back from a restful holiday break, it’s time to crank up the identity theft, data breach and cyber security news cycle. And, as always, there is no shortage of news. Oh, and for all of you Cyber Monday shoppers out there, word of caution: be careful when shopping online today.

Protect Yourself From Identity Theft on Cyber Monday Now that the holiday shopping season is in full swing the malls, internet, and other shopping centers are packed with shoppers. While the holiday shopping season may be busy for you, it can be even busier for identity thieves. Whether you are shopping at brick-and-mortar stores or doing your holiday shopping online, it is important that shoppers take measures to ensure their identity is protected. <

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Knowing identity theft statistics will encourage you to work more for your own protection.

 The roles of consumers do not stop by merely purchasing, borrowing and paying for everything bought and borrowed. Consumers have this great responsibility of opting for any identity theft protection plans that would not only secure their money but will also protect their lives. The stealing of identity has significantly etched remarkable statistics which consumers need to be aware of in order to be encouraged to seek for better protection schemes against perpetrators of identity stealing. Numbers are varied but there is only one thing which remains to be a fact: Identity theft instances have been growing in number but there are no signs of slowing down.

 Identity theft happens almost anywhere even just inside the homes. The circumstance happens when the consumer fails to protect himself and reveal his financial information to anyone. T

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We often lean on law enforcement to do the dirty work wen it comes to fighting identity theft. And, rightly so…they are the professionals and are doing a fine job in fighting the battle everyday. But, wouldn’t it be cool to be the person who calls in a tip that leads to the capture and arrest of a criminal who runs an identity theft ring with 500 victims?

That is right. Crime stoppers wants your help. Right now, in NYC, law enforcement is looking for Raven Moses, (pictured) for identity theft and bank fraud scheme involving thousands of counterfeit checks with numerous commercial banks in Manhattan, police said. Moses, along with other individuals, obtained personal and bank account information and used it to write thousands of counterfeit checks.

According to the police, the defendants stole more than “$1.4 million from one bank’s accounts and substantial additional sums from other banks.”

Here’s your chance to be a hero. Anyone with

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When a virus recruits an infected PC into a botnet, a criminal hacker is able to remotely access all the data on that computer.

Robot networks, or botnets, have a varied history. A bot, which doesn’t necessarily have to be malicious or harmful, is essentially a program designed to connect to a server and execute a command or series of commands.

As reported by a McAfee study, networks of bots, otherwise known as drones or zombies, are often used to commit cybercrime. This can include “stealing trade secrets, inserting malware into source code files, disrupting access or service, compromising data integrity, and stealing employee identity information. The results to a business can be disastrous and lead to the loss of revenue, regulatory compliance, customer confidence, reputation, and even of the business itself. For Full Article…