Phishing and Internet Scams - What Really Happens to Your Personal Information

Ever wonder what happens to your account information once it is stolen in a phishing, identity theft or spyware scam? The underworld of account hijacking, credit card fraud and ID theft are very complex and very profitable. These criminal operations involve sophisticated layers of specialists that rival large corporations.

Hackers use spyware and other malware to compromise unprotected computers and set up 'bot nets' of 'zombies' or 'robots' that can support large volumes of spam or steal you passwords as you type them. They can then sell access to the compromised computers to phishers. The phishers, who then set up the spoofed websites and send the fake emails to get your account information often aren't involved with the actual fraudulent charges that later appear. Instead they sell your account information to other criminals who have to capability to create fake cards or handle transfers or online bill payments out of your bank account (even if you don't use your online banking account). And the layers continue, making it virtually impossible to track or catch the fraudsters.

Unfortunately, it's possible that your Western Union, credit card or online banking account infomation has already been stolen and is for sale and you don't even know it, yet. Think about the last time you updated your anti-virus or anti-spyware software... The criminals set up websites and send out emails that list stolen accounts for sale. They even include the BIN numbers of the credit cards that identify what bank they are from and potential credit limits. Compromised online banking account creditials (user ids and passwords) are also available and give the purchaser access to whatever information and bill payment/transfer capability your online banking account provides.

SecurePCNews was able to get a copy of one email that is attempting to sell stolen account information. Notice that this single email includes offers for compromised accounts at what should be some of the most secure companies in the world including: Western Union, PayPal, Bank of America (BOA), Wachovia, Chase, Wells Fargo, Halifax and HSBC.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
From: GLOBAL AGENCIES [mailto:[REDACTED]@yahoo.co.uk]
Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2008 4:33 AM
To: [REDACTED]@yahoo.co.uk
Subject: BUY WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER MTCN,CVV CREDIT CARD BANK TRANSFER LOGIN

LASTEST FOR SALE NEW WESTERN UNION MTCN WITH INFO FOR $4,600 = $380

1 Visa card.................................2$
1 master card.............................2$
1 amex card...............................3$
1 Discover card............................3$
1 Company card..........................6$
1 Uk Card Normal CC...................5$
1 UK Card Any Series ..................$6
1 Uk Card With DOB ...................6$
1 Track 1& 2 CC......................................15$
1 Fresh Fullz .........................................20$
1 Dead Fullz ..........................................12$

1 Paypal verified without balance==30$
1 Paypal verified with 2000$+ balance ==150$

BALANCE IN CHASE ..............................70K TO 155K($)
========360$
BALANCE IN WASHOVIA.........................24K TO
80K($)===========250$
BALANCE IN BOA.....................................75K TO
150K($)==========300$
BALANCE IN CREDIT
UNION................................................ANY AMOUNT($)=========400$
BALANCE IN HALIFAX...............ANY AMOUNT(£)=========420$
BALANCE IN HSBC...............ANY AMOUNT(£)=========420$
BALANCE IN ABBEY...............ANY AMOUNT(£)=========520$
BALANCE IN SMILES...............ANY AMOUNT(£)=========420$
BALANCE IN NATWEST...............ANY AMOUNT(£)=========420$
BALANCE IN COMPASS............................ANY
AMOUNT(£)=========370$
BALANCE IN WELSFARGO........................ANY AMOUNT($)=========320$
BALANCE IN WACHOVIA........................ANY AMOUNT($)=========320$
YOU CAN CONTACT FOR MANY MORE OTHER BANK LOG YOU NEED...


1 COMERSUS SOFTWARE WITH BANK LOG IN AND BANK CREDIT CARD CODE
==========1500$
2 COMERSUS SOFTWARE WITHOUT BANK LOG IN AND BANK CREDIT CARD CODE
==========1000$
3 NEW WESTERN UNION HACKING BUG FOR WORLD WIDE TRANSFER
====================400$
4 NEW PAYPAL LOG IN HACKWARE FOR HACKING FRESH PAYPAL
=======================250$
5 NEW SHOP ADMIN HACKWARE FOR HACKING ONLINE SHOP FOR CREDIT
CARD============620$
6 NEW CREDIT CARD AMOUNT CHECKER FOR PEOPLE WANTING TO KNOW AMOUNT ON
CC===120$
7 NEW CREDIT CARD VALIDATOR FOR VALIDATING ANY FULL CC INFO
=====================320$
8 ALL INBOX: MAILER, CPANEL-WEBMAIL: horde/squirel & neomail
==========$25
9 EMAIL LEADS: UAE,JP,CH,IT,FR,NL,DE,USA,UK,CA. MIXED COUNTRY
AVAILABLE==$30/1MB

OTHER SERVICE
INCLUDE..........................................................................................
BANK TO BANK TRANSFER TO ANY USA BANK
BANK TO BANK TRANSFER TO ANY UK BANK
BANK TO BANK TRANSFER TO ANY EURO COUNTRY BANK
AMOUNT TO PAY FOR THAT DEPEND ON AMOUNT YOU WANT TO TRANSFER


READ AND UNDERSTAND MY RULES AND REGULATION BEFORE YOU CONTACT ME
1 NO FREE FRESH OR DEAD CARD
2 NO TEST CARD
3 NO PLEASE AM POOR
4 NO I WILL PAY LATER YOU
5 NO TOO MANY CHAT
6 DO NOT MESSAGE ME IF YOU NOT READY TO BUY ANYTHING OR DEAL CUZ I'M
NOT WANT TIME WASTER
7 PAYMENT I ACCEPT: E-GOLD,C-GOLD,E-BULLION,PECUNIX,WESTERN UNION
AND MONEY GRAM
8 500$ ORDER LIMIT FOR WESTERN UNION & MONEY GRAM

BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN DEALING WITH SOMEONE DONT LOOSE YOUR MONEY TO FUCKING RIPPERS AND WE HOPE TO GIVE YOU THE BEST STUFFS YOU LOVE AND DONT FORGET WE NEED MORE CUSTOMER TO GIVE US MORE MONEY HERE PLEASE....

ON YAHOO MESSENGER ONLY .
INSTANT CHAT:[REDACTED]
TEL : I DONT GIVE OUT
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Scary stuff, Right? Can you protect yourself from becoming a victim of identify theft or account hijacking? The great news is that there are lots of products and services that offer prevention and protection.

The first place to start is by protecting your PC. Companies like McAfee, Symantec and PCSecurityGaurd offer anti-virus, anti-spyware and firewall products that can prevent, detect and remove malware from your computer before you information is stolen.

Services like LifeLock and Identity Guard offer complete identity theft protection solutions and will even provide assistance if you even become a victim.

Lastly, make sure you watch your credit report. Often the first place that fraud shows up is in your credit report. New accounts can be opened in your name and it's not until you receive the first default notice that you even become aware of the problem. By that time it's your problem to deal with. We recommend Equifax Credit Watch services that monitors your credit report and notifies you of any suspicious account activity BEFORE it becomes a problem.

For more information about what to do if you think you may be the victim of identity theft visit SecurePCNews at where you can find specific information about dealing with Identity Theft, credit card fraud and other internet and email scams like phishing.

Subscribe to the SecurePCNews Newsletter to get information like this delivered to your email inbox as well as timely important tips on protecting yourself online.

About the Author: Aubrey Jones helped lead development of one of the first online banking solutions in the United States (all the way back in the old 26K modem dial up days). He then spent over a decade developing and managing internet banking services for one of the US's largest financial institutions. As an Internet Risk Manager he was responsible for protecting over 2 million online banking clients from theats like identify theft, phishing and account hijacking.

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Alert - Credit Card Fraud and Holiday Shopping

Alert - Holiday Shopping Could Put Your at Greater Risk for Credit Card Fraud

This the season for shopping, giving and unfortunately credit card fraud. While credit card fraud can occur at any time of the year the Holidays offer an increased risk.

Increased usages of credit and debit cards, long lines at checkouts, higher frequency of online credit card purchases as well as a more festive shopper can all add up to a higher chance that you could fall victim to credit card fraud or debit card fraud.

A recent investigative report by Lesley Tanner at CBS03 TV in Springfield, MA illustrated the danger.

A little piece of plastic has shortened shopping times and made spending a cinch, but what happens when someone uses your credit card against you."It would be so easy for someone to take someone's card and get away with it," says Joey Swain of West Springfield. But it shouldn't be, store cashiers are supposed to match your signature every time you swipe."I would probably say 99-percent of the time they don't ask for ID," says Stacey Bingham of Ludlow. And when lines get long the statistics get even worse."Christmas is a huge example based upon the lines," says Kostin, Ruffkess & Company's Fraud Specialist Joseph Centofanti. "They don't look at anything it's just such a huge process to move everybody through."

The reporter found lack security measures by some store personal that could increase the likelihood of your credit card being used by a fraudster.

The story goes on to point out that you can take steps to protect yourself and limit the possibility that a lost or stolen credit card number can result in financial loss and even identity theft.

The full report is available here.

Did you know that every 3 seconds an identity is stolen? You can not afford not to protect your good name with guaranteed protection. LifeLock offers a guarantee of their identity protection service of up to $1,000,000. This is the identity theft prevention you've seen advertised on television.

Here are some things to do to make sure you protect your credit card information or at least minimize the damage if you become a victim of credit card fraud.

1. Vigilantly review for statement as soon as it arrives and immediately report charges you don't recognize.
2. Consider using online banking to view you transactions and statements. A number of studies have demonstrated that people who regularly view their transactions online have smaller losses on average than those who don't.
3. Consider switching to an electronic statement instead of paper. Most major credit card issuers support this.
4. Keep your credit card in a secure place when shopping. Stores crowded with Holiday shoppers make great targets for criminals.
5. Shred documents that contain personal information such as credit card statements. Contrary to common belief, a large percentage of identity theft occurs after personal information is found lying in the open, or in trash bins.
6. Make sure you have adequately protected your computer with current, updated anti-virus and anti-spyware programs.
7. Regularly review your credit report.
8. Be aware of your Bank's policy on handling stolen credit and debit cards. Be aware that while some protection is available there are steps you have to follow to limit your loss. Additionally, some banks extend this protection, even offering 'Zero' liability is some cases.

Get McAfee VirusScan. Click here.

For more information about what to do if you think you may be the victim of identity theft visit SecurePCNews at where you can find specific information about dealing with Identity Theft.

Don't fall victim to scams like this. Subscribe to the SecurePCNews.com Newsletter to get timely, relevant information about phishing, viruses and Identity theft.

Looking for a great Holiday gift? Why not protect someone you love by securing their PC. Click here for a great selection of PC Security Gifts.

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