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IBM Reports On Spear Phishers

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the something-to-think-about dept.

FrenchyinOntario writes "IBM reports that while "regular" phishing is declining the black hats are now engaging in targeted spear phishing to glean as much information about a specific identity as they can for all the usual cybercrime reasons. It concerns authorities because the usual suspects - criminal and terrorist organizations - will want to take advantage of this, but the chilling part is how your identity will now be dependent on multiple institutions protecting your personal information, as opposed to eBay, PayPal, your bank, etc."

3 of 169 comments (clear)

  1. Slashdotted, mirror here by winkydink · · Score: 5, Informative

    click me, click me!

    --

    "I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey

  2. A way around this... by ajiva · · Score: 5, Informative

    There is one way around this, that's to go to the 3 large credit companies and tell them to "Freeze" your credit (I think it costs $5-$10). Anyway nobody can open an account in your name, and as long as you remember to "thaw" your account before getting a loan, you'll be ok. It's no perfect, and I'd argue that all credit information should be purged from people who don't need it (this includes SSN numbers). Heck none of this should even be on file...

  3. Re:An Open Information Society by Locke2005 · · Score: 4, Informative

    Are you thinking of the Transparent Society essay by David Brin?

    --
    I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.