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Identity Theft Skeptic Ends Up As Fraud Victim
An anonymous reader writes "British TV host Jeremy Clarkson recently wrote a newspaper editorial ridiculing the uproar that had occurred after the British government admitted to losing two compact discs containing the personal information on 25 million people. To support his claim about the overhyped risks of identity theft, he published his bank account information in the article. Proving that some identity thieves have a sense of humor, a week later, he found out that someone had set up an automatic bank transfer for $1000 to a diabetes charity from his account. This comes less than a year after the CEO of LifeLock, an identity theft protection company which publishes the CEO's social security number on its website, himself was a victim of financial fraud. Back in July of 2007, a man in Texas was able to secure a $500 loan from a payday loan company using the CEO's widely publicized SSN. Will this latest incident finally prove that identity theft is real, and that publishing your own financial info is an invitation for fraud?"
In the immortal words of Bugs Bunny: "What a maroon!"
The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
That was a pretty arrogant move, even for his standards, and I'm sure he's be humbled (somewhat) after being taken down a peg. I guess that's the price you pay for overconfidence.
I like the scam they pulled, but to be truly poetic, the bank transfer should have gone to Friends of the Earth. Anyone who knows of Clarkson will understand.
"Be light, stinging, insolent and melancholy"
How in hell is this possible?
Isn't your bank the only institution able to transfer money out of your account? Don't you have to show your ID? Don't you have to sign some documents???
My opinion is ID theft is only possible because the clerks in the banks are too lazy to check for an ID or a signature. Whenever you go to a bar in the US, they will look at your ID before they serve booze, but if you set up a $xxxx account/load no one will ever check it. This is just how ridiculous the system is. Account number without proof of identity should be as useless as a car without gas.
To be fair what happened was someone set up a Direct Debit in his name, where a company or organisation can deduct money directly from your bank account. These are _very_ common in the UK, much more so than direct bill payment in the US.
One of the reasons they are so common is that every transaction under them is covered by the Direct Debit Guarantee. Under this, he can get an immediate refund from his bank just by asking.
The process of being approved to collect direct debits is pretty arduous, as the banks bear a lot of the costs if something goes wrong. At the same time, the consumer has a level of protection light years beyond that offered in the US for similar transactions.
It's not that uncommon for friends exchanging money in the UK (say someone borrowed some cash for a night out) to simply hand over their bank details and get the money from their friend as an electronic transfer using online banking. In general it'd be pretty difficult for someone to take money from an individual's bank account, even knowing their details for their own benefit. I'm not even sure most online banking in the US lets you deposit money directly into another person's account?
Actually, it doesn't say that he was a victim of "identity theft". It says that he is an "Identity Theft Skeptic" and that he is a "Fraud Victim". The article called the crime "identity fraud" which seems accurate. Somebody said "These is my account information, please accept my money." - Perfectly describable as "identity fraud" and nearly enough for the article submitter to assume that the fraudsters were "identity thieves" as he described them.
He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
Before anyone claims that giving his bank account number out was irresponsible - it's printed on the bottom of your cheques.
[1] Even if more than one person can have the same name, it should be easier than normal in this case.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
You may appreciate his views on America (choice quote 'when being chased by a gang of rednecks': "I honestly believe that in certain parts of America now, people have started to mate with vegetables.")
In the UK you can only set up a direct debit to certain registered things, one of them being charities.
The pranksters couldn't have set up direct debit to their own account, for example.
No sig today...
We have a right to privacy, as the 4th Amendment says. The government exists to protect it
Wrong. That's not what the 4th amendment says. The 4th amendment puts a limit on the government's ability to invade your privacy:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
It does not establish a right to privacy; that right, since it is not expressly surrendered to the government in the Constitution, is reserved to the states and the people via the 10th amendment.
It is up to your state and local government to define the limits of other individuals' ability to encroach on your privacy and property. (Similarly, it is up to those governments to specify how they protect individual's lives from the threat of other individuals.) If they fail to sufficiently protect those rights, well, there's always the 2nd amendment...
Did I say overlords? I meant protectors.
Signed
Sam B. Carswell
4994 Pin Oak Drive
Whittier, CA 90603
Email Address: SamBCarswell@fontdrift.com
Phone: 562-943-0713
Mother's maiden name: Grondin
Birthday: January 27, 1955
Visa: 4532 7971 3753 8401
Expires: 12/2009
SSN: 550-80-1765
UPS Tracking Number for my Plasma TV: 1Z 195 055 46 3018 447 5
Yes, but what's your /. password?
In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure dome decree
"Plus, it'd be nice to not get those 10-15 credit card offers a week in the mail."
No, no, no! You're looking at this all wrong!
I LOVE getting those free offers in the mail - but only the ones with the return-postage-paid envelopes.
Did you know that you can tape that envelope to ANYTHING (almost...) that weighs less than 70 lbs.? And it will be delivered?
That's how I get rid of my old 486, 386, etc computers. And I don't fill up MY landfill! (And they have to dispose of them correctly!)
Sweeeet!!
On the flip side, a recent episode of Top Gear featured the presenters in a race across London- by car, bicycle, public transport, and speedboat on the Thames. Of course the bike won...
It's a six digit ID. Who cares? :)
-- The Genesis project? What's that?