Glut In Stolen Identities Forces Price Cut

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Glut In Stolen Identities Forces Price Cut

Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday November 20, 2013 @05:32PM from the cheaper-by-the-dozen dept.

CowboyRobot writes "The price of a stolen identity has dropped as much as 37 percent in the cybercrime underground: to $25 for a U.S. identity, and $40 for an overseas identity. For $300 or less, you can acquire credentials for a bank account with a balance of $70,000 to $150,000, and $400 is all it takes to get a rival or targeted business knocked offline with a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS)-for-hire attack. Meanwhile, ID theft and bank account credentials are getting cheaper because there is just so much inventory (a.k.a. stolen personal information) out there. Bots are cheap, too: 1,000 bots go for $20, and 15,000, for $250."

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Wait... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-20 17:37 · Score: 1

$300 get me a bank account with $70k to $150k in it!?! Count me in!
Why is this junk even on slashdot?
1. Re:Wait... by negRo_slim · 2013-11-20 17:39 · Score: 1
  
  but wait what about
  
  to $25 for a U.S. identity, and $40 for an overseas identity
  Is that 25 FOR? or it's lessened by 25... So cunfused how math?
  
  --
  On the Oregon Cost born and raised, On the beach is where I spent most of my days
2. Re:Wait... by benjfowler · 2013-11-20 22:23 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  It's interesting for what it implies:
  Stealing personal data is easy and cheap. Cashing out certainly isn't, and is where banks' "defence in depth" security strategy pays off.
3. Re:Wait... by Joce640k · 2013-11-21 01:26 · Score: 1
  
  How many bitcoins could you mine with a $250 botnet?
  
  --
  No sig today...
4. Re:Wait... by ifiwereasculptor · 2013-11-21 01:56 · Score: 2
  
  "The price of a stolen identity has dropped [...] to $25 for a U.S identity [...]"
  Seems pretty clear.
5. Re:Wait... by TheCarp · 2013-11-21 02:14 · Score: 2
  
  Ahhh but then, how many botnets could you get for 70k-150k?
  
  --
  "I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
6. Re:Wait... by TheCarp · 2013-11-21 02:22 · Score: 1
  
  And especially pays off for anyone who can get it out...especially if they can do it while leaving someone else (or many other people) holding the (empty) bag(s). I still laugh about this one:
  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/10/nyregion/eight-charged-in-45-million-global-cyber-bank-thefts.html?_r=0
  
  two precision operations that involved people in more than two dozen countries acting in close coordination and with surgical precision, thieves stole $45 million from thousands of A.T.M.'s in a matter of hours.
  
  --
  "I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
7. Re:Wait... by Joce640k · 2013-11-21 03:18 · Score: 1
  
  If a $250 botnet is profitable then the sky's the limit. All you do is reinvest the profit in more botnets and you bank balance will go up exponentially. You'll be buying up islands in the Pacific in no time.
  
  --
  No sig today...
Change your passwords ASAP! by DigiShaman · 2013-11-20 17:44 · Score: 5, Informative

Seriously! If you even suspect that the machine you're working from has ben compromised by malware, CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD to the accounts you've used via a known clean computer. Then proceed to nuke the drive from orbit and reload the OS and apps. Botnets are known sources of dropping key loggers and harvesting user data to a central database.

--
Life is not for the lazy.
1. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by sycodon · 2013-11-20 18:26 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  We need a bounty on cyber criminals. How about $25 per ear?
  
  --
  When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
2. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by MaskedSlacker · 2013-11-20 19:55 · Score: 1
  
  BeOS came on CDs?
3. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-21 00:16 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  I guess that leaves Linux, Windows, and OS X out.
4. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by swillden · 2013-11-21 00:53 · Score: 2
  
  Your suggestion that we punish a non-violent crime with body mutilation seems contrary to your signature. Not arguing either point, they just seem dissonant to me. Perhaps you can introduce me to new information that will resolve the two.
  There is a simple but deep philosophical perspective shift you need to make to resolve the apparent dichotomy between the statements. Put simply, you need to realize he was joking. I'll leave it as an exercise for you to determine which of the statements was a joke, or if perhaps both were.
  
  --
  Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
5. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by LoRdTAW · 2013-11-21 01:03 · Score: 2
  
  Not to be a pedant but:
  Sure did. Still have my R4 cd. Starting with R5, the personal edition or PE of BeOS was a free download with only a developer edition available on CD.
6. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by TheRaven64 · 2013-11-21 01:59 · Score: 1
  
  BeOS 5 is not easy to compromise remotely because the network stack crashes under load, or after a few minutes of low load. Does Haiku have the same feature?
  
  --
  I am TheRaven on Soylent News
7. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by the+grace+of+R'hllor · 2013-11-21 02:05 · Score: 1
  
  Change your OS? Only after shredding the mainboard and getting a new PC. If you're paranoid or in a high-money environment, that is. There is malware that nestles in the BIOS, and can install keyloggers or network sniffers before the OS is even allowed to boot up.
8. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by ifiwereasculptor · 2013-11-21 02:06 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  I don't know how it is in the US, but here banks seem to deeply dislike OSs not retardedly easy to compromise. I have accounts in two banks. One of them started working in Linux only about four years ago, the other only did so last year. They both regularly splurt errors because of openJDK incompatibility - they want Sun's Java. And one of them hilariously has its https certification broken for almost a year now. Airlines are even funnier. At least one of them still only works on IE.
9. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by sycodon · 2013-11-21 02:24 · Score: 1
  
  Actually, I'm suggesting that we kill them first. THEN, cut off their ears.
  And this situation and the sig are not related at all. We aren't talking about saving Humanity, we are talking about exterminating rodents.
  
  --
  When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
10. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by sycodon · 2013-11-21 02:35 · Score: 1
  
  Yet...
  I am not completely convinced that just because someone doesn't attempt to perpetrate violence upon you, that you are not justified in responding to the non-violent crime with violence.
  
  --
  When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
11. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by swillden · 2013-11-21 02:59 · Score: 1
  
  Well, technically, kidnapping and imprisonment are violent acts, and we have our police and courts do those to non-violent offenders all the time. Mutilation is a little beyond the pale, though.
  
  --
  Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
12. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by swb · 2013-11-21 03:12 · Score: 1
  
  A friend of my wife just went through this TWICE in a week because she presumably didn't scrub her computer.
  She had her total identity stolen -- addresses changed, a mortgage applied for, thousands charged to her credit cards, bank information stolen (although they didn't actually take her bank account yet).
  She changed everything -- new cards, new bank account, etc, and a few days later had it all stolen again.
  What I find strange is that she was re-targeted. Given the apparent low cost of an identity with a lot of money, you'd think ID thieves who "lost" an identity they were trying to steal would move on to another one unless they one they had stolen was worth healthy six figures plus. This woman wasn't that -- she's a single parent with a kid in college.
13. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by ewieling · 2013-11-21 03:19 · Score: 1
  
  If a bank can't keep their SSL cert up to date why should you trust them with your money?
  
  --
  I really shouldn't have used someone else's email address for this account.
14. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by dotancohen · 2013-11-21 04:22 · Score: 2
  
  Then change banks, and tell them why.
  I called Bank Leumi monthly for years about Firefox-on-Linux compatibility and they always told me that "it is in the works". I finally left the bank for another bank (Poalim) after sitting with the new bank's manager in his office with my Fedora laptop (~2009) checking that their site works on my system. When it did, I changed banks and wrote letters about why to both banks' presidents.
  
  --
  It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.
15. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by g0bshiTe · 2013-11-21 06:53 · Score: 1
  
  Why do you find it strange that she was re-targeted after the first attack worked?
  
  Now I see you responded early in your post to your last statement, so I'll refer you to the response to your last statement. "thousands charged to her credit cards", makes me think the attack was successful to some degree which is why she was re-targeted even though she wasn't worth six figures.
  
  --
  I am Bennett Haselton! I am Bennett Haselton!
16. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by PopeRatzo · 2013-11-21 07:26 · Score: 2
  
  I still have BeOS floppy disks. I bring them out on occasion to show people who don't believe me.
  
  --
  You are welcome on my lawn.
17. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by ahabswhale · 2013-11-21 17:06 · Score: 2
  
  Amiga OS ftw!
  
  --
  Are agnostics skeptical of unicorns too?
18. Re:Change your passwords ASAP! by ahabswhale · 2013-11-21 17:07 · Score: 1
  
  WTF do they need Java for?
  
  --
  Are agnostics skeptical of unicorns too?
those numbers seem unsustainable by ffflala · 2013-11-20 17:47 · Score: 2

Purchasing $150,000 for $400 (vary currency as necessary) would seem to be a loophole that would quickly undermine the world economy. Perhaps "price" of a stolen identity isn't a proper measure of "value".
1. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by ATMAvatar · 2013-11-20 17:51 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  Exactly. You aren't going to successfully withdraw all $150k in one go. Withdraw $100 once or twice a week, and there's a decent chance the owner may not notice for some time.
  
  --
  "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
2. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-20 17:58 · Score: 1
  
  Well, to be sure it's supply and demand. But what does it say if the identity of a US citizen is about 1/2 that of a Nigerian prince?
3. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by artor3 · 2013-11-20 18:01 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  I think it goes without saying that when someone sells a $150k bank account for $400, it's because they know they can't withdraw more than $400 without getting caught.
4. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by sjames · 2013-11-20 18:06 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Criminal activity often involves taking a great deal of value from the victim and converting it to a much more modest value for yourself.
  In economic terms, the difference represents the risk taken. The guy who grabs the ID info sees little risk in that, but there is considerably more risk in actually using the info, so it sells at a steep discount.
  This sort of thing actually is undermining the banking system. How long will it be before a transaction is as likely to be fraudulent as not?
5. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by AK+Marc · 2013-11-20 18:37 · Score: 2
  
  That, and how can we verify this? Where are the links to the online marketplaces?
  
  --
  Learn to love Alaska
6. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by AK+Marc · 2013-11-20 18:41 · Score: 1
  
  I've moved $60k in a single overseas transfer. Though, they wouldn't move it without me showing up in the branch in person. I could have transferred the same amount domestically from online.
  
  --
  Learn to love Alaska
7. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by MaskedSlacker · 2013-11-20 19:57 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Moving $60k online doesn't do you any good. You move it from their bank account to...what? Another stolen account that you can't withdraw from? Or one that has your address? Or one with a stolen SS#, but that has you on security cam footage? You move that kind of money out and you are going to be caught.
8. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by AK+Marc · 2013-11-20 20:17 · Score: 1
  
  You move it from one they have direct access to, to an intermediate account, which they can't immediately block you from. You get days from when the loss is discovered, rather than hours. Then you can transfer it to another account, or withdraw it at a more leisurely pace.
  
  --
  Learn to love Alaska
9. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by Joining+Yet+Again · 2013-11-20 22:10 · Score: 1
  
  Risk/reward, homecat.
  It's like selling toxic debt for 10% of the amount of the debt. The new creditors know that they're going to have little luck with maybe 3/4, and the remaining 1/4 will take money+time to cough up.
10. Re: those numbers seem unsustainable by tleaf100 · 2013-11-20 23:00 · Score: 1
  
  well enough folk around the world everyday get away with it,if this data had no value,the price just would not drop,so they must have some worth in the real world,if we go by average police catch rate of say 33% for this type of crime,thats a lot of cash or goods that are from other folks account. you have to use your imagination.
11. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by Sique · 2013-11-21 00:55 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  That's where the real valuable asset comes in: the money mule.
  Money mules are people tricked into agreeing to whitewash the stolen money by accepting the money withdrawn from the stolen account and then transferring it via wire transfer to the plunderer.
  When the original owner of the account sees the transfer, he will call the bank and reverse it. At this time, the money mule will already have withdrawn the money from their account and transferred it. This leaves the money mule with the debt incurred, because they now lose the money from the stolen account, and are thus effectively paying the plunderer from their own money.
  This puts the value of a stolen account to about the amount of money the money mule will be able to cough up until their own bank takes action.
  
  --
  .sig: Sique *sigh*
12. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by Big+Hairy+Ian · 2013-11-21 01:07 · Score: 1
  
  Convert it to bitcoins :)
  
  --
  Build a Man a Fire, and He'll Be Warm for a Day. Set a Man on Fire, and He'll Be Warm for the Rest of His Life.
13. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by AmiMoJo · 2013-11-21 01:07 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  Usually the plan is not to withdraw money from the account directly. Too easy to get caught, owner of the account usually notices pretty quickly. Instead the account is used to open other accounts or take out loans which are then defaulted on.
  This is pretty common in the UK. We have these shitty pay-day loan companies that charge 5000% interest and do only the most basic checks before handing over the cash. People give them someone else's name and bank account, so the first thing the victim knows about it is when Wonga starts taking internet payments by Direct Debit.
  
  --
  const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
  SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
14. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by hodet · 2013-11-21 01:45 · Score: 2
  
  Or maybe the $150,000 is not the real prize. If you can access an account with that much money in it you can use it as part of your new "identity" to leverage even further into another account. The person whose identity has been stolen would be none the wiser and the thief could make off with 10 times that amount. If you try and access any of that 150k the bank would shut it down immediately after you pulled out the first $500. If a different bank really thought you were the owner of the account you can take your sweet time, maybe even make a couple of payments back to the bank to drag out the process.
15. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by Jason+Levine · 2013-11-21 02:42 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  Exactly this. When my identity was stolen, the thieves didn't use it to find and break into my bank account. Instead, they opened a credit card in my name (with my address, SSN, and DOB, but NOT with the correct Mother's Maiden name - red flag #1). The only reason they didn't get away with it was that they 1) paid for rush shipment of the credit card and 2) then immediately changed the address (red flag #2). So the card got shipped out quickly to my address and THEN the address was changed. The card arrived at my doorstep instead of theirs. Of course, that didn't stop them as they tried to get a $5,000 cash advance before even activating the card (red flag #3).
  And the credit card company's response to me? "Are you sure your wife didn't open the card in your name without telling you? No? Well, we can't give you any information on the account because if you go and kill them then we're liable." They stonewalled me and when I got the police involved, they directed them to a number that was never answered. To them, they just closed the account and the problem was solved. Actually helping to catch the people who did this would involve effort that they weren't willing to put in. That's why Capital One credit card's are not and will never be "what's in my wallet."
  
  --
  My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
16. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by TheCarp · 2013-11-21 02:51 · Score: 1
  
  Yup. And the thing is, there really isn't much you can do about this loophole in humanity. Hell a while back (maybe someone has a link to the story) there was an investigation done where someone tracked one of these people down through a scam.
  This guy has met a woman online, on a dating site. She told him she ran an international business and needed help doing shipping in the US, next thing you know, packages are arriving at his door and he is accepting them and forwarding them on.... often out of his own pocket!
  I could see similar here... Hows this "Hey baby, I wish i could come back to the US soon, but they have totally screwed up my VISA, and I have an ATM card at an American bank and they will kill me in fees if I try to bring the money here, if I send you the card, can you withdraw the money and send it to me? Keep a few hundred for yourself, you will be saving me more than you know"
  Insert that after a week or so of online flirting, from a profile of a busty woman, and I bet you could drain several accounts a week.
  
  --
  "I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
17. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by ub3r+n3u7r4l1st · 2013-11-21 04:53 · Score: 1
  
  In fact, most money mules are recruited via "work-at-home" schemes.
  
  --
  New Economic Perspectives
18. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by g0bshiTe · 2013-11-21 06:58 · Score: 1
  
  Come on now, you aren't purchasing $150k for $400, it's like market speculators, you are purchasing a chance to increase your $400 to $150k, you still have to figure a way to milk that from the accounts and then actually get away with it.
  
  Those selling the accounts are doing so because it's $400 in hand and much much lower risk.
  
  --
  I am Bennett Haselton! I am Bennett Haselton!
19. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by ffflala · 2013-11-21 18:09 · Score: 1
  
  When it comes to transactions of currency, it seems like one never has to look too far back to find some egregious level of fraud. I'm still convinced that the essential reason that gold is worth so much, and probably will as long as humans exist within proximity to gold, is because gold is shiny.
20. Re:those numbers seem unsustainable by sjames · 2013-11-21 19:19 · Score: 1
  
  While it has many useful physical properties and is even essential for a few practical applications, a fair part of the demand is for such things as jewelry. As such, it's value is very much tied to the fact that it is shiny and people like that. If people woke up one day and decided they were much more into matte, the 'value' of gold would fall considerably.
Get rid of spam? by SB9876 · 2013-11-20 17:57 · Score: 5, Funny

So, if I'm to follow the reasoning of this article, if we all use weak passwords , the market gets flooded and they all go out of buisness?
SWEET
password:password, here I come!
1. Re:Get rid of spam? by Zargg · 2013-11-20 18:03 · Score: 1
  
  Oops, commenting to remove accidental mod. Hit overrated, meant funny!
2. Re:Get rid of spam? by Arethan · 2013-11-20 18:35 · Score: 1
  
  passwordistaco
  enough said.
3. Re:Get rid of spam? by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-21 01:14 · Score: 1
  
  you know you lose the mod point all together when you comment...
Capital Crime by Z00L00K · 2013-11-20 18:02 · Score: 1

Identity theft should be a capital crime.

--
If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
1. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-20 18:21 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  'Identity theft' should be recognized for what it really is, bank fraud.
  First the crooks defraud the banks by performing transactions in someone else's name. This is aided by the banks insistence on not implementing secure authentication.
  Then the banks defraud you by insisting that you are responsible for the transactions in spite of not having a single shred of evidence that you made them.
  The credit agencies compound it by repeating the bank's financial gossip with a wanton disregard for the truth.
  The 'justice system' then aids and abets by not telling the banks to pound sand and by not convicting the credit agencies for libel./p.
2. Re:Capital Crime by sycodon · 2013-11-20 18:27 · Score: 1
  
  We need a bounty on identity thieves.
  Open season year round!
  
  --
  When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
3. Re:Capital Crime by jhol13 · 2013-11-20 20:11 · Score: 1
  
  How do you make secure authentication in banks?
  You do know people in UK refuse to have ID cards of any kind, therefore in bank a gas bill is considered "identification".
  In Finland a (very old) driving licence suffice - the picture usually is so bad as to pass if you look even a bit like.
  Banks are not always the culprit.
4. Re:Capital Crime by MysteriousPreacher · 2013-11-20 20:28 · Score: 1
  
  Opening an account requires a bit more than that:
  http://www.barclays.co.uk/CurrentAccounts/Identificationdocumentsrequired/P1242557966027
  I know as well that Natwest asked for my passport when I wanted to change my contact details.
  
  --
  -- Using the preview button since 2005
5. Re:Capital Crime by cayce · 2013-11-20 20:30 · Score: 1
  
  In Mexico you can't make any kind of transaction without your voter registration card. Which is fairly secure and the country's de-facto method of identification.
  Having a country "mandatory" registry goes a long way to avoid identity theft and minimize fraud.
6. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-20 20:50 · Score: 2
  
  The 'victim' or 'identity theft' certainly isn't the culprit. The banks COULD take a photo of the person when they sign up and issue them a smart card with a unique key pair. They could check to see if you answer the home phone and give them an agreed upon code word to verify that you really live there. They could insist on mailing the smart card to your current address (but not activate it until you call them with the a code word and read off a unique serial number).
  The point is that it's on them, to verify the identity of people they hand out money to. They are the only ones with any ability to control the process. I cannot even know if a fraudster talks to a bank I have never heard of, much less control the outcome. They have no right to make their problem into my problem. If they don't want to do any of those things, that's fine too as long as they are willing to eat the losses.
  Unless there's a law requiring the banks to accept a gas bill or a poor quality photo ID, it's still on them because it's their policy that is causing them trouble.
7. Re:Capital Crime by Sockatume · 2013-11-20 21:41 · Score: 1
  
  Identity theft is usually prosecuted as bank fraud. Laws against identity theft in and of itself do exist, but usually the fraud is what people get done for. However you still have to demonstrate that you did not perform the transactions and therefore have been defrauded by some John Doe.
  
  --
  No kidding!!! What do you say at this point?
8. Re:Capital Crime by aheath · 2013-11-20 22:10 · Score: 2
  
  There is no requirement to carry identity cards in the UK or the US. Ration cards were used as a national identity card during the second world war. My grandfather committed an act of civil disobedience when he was stopped for speeding after the war. He refused to show his ration card because the war was over. His act of civil disobedience was debated in parliament and is one of the reasons why there are no national identity cards in the UK. British Identity Cards: Arguments For and Against their Retention and Use 1945-1952 Doesn't mention my grandfather but does provide a good overview of the postwar debate about national identity cards.
9. Re:Capital Crime by Joining+Yet+Again · 2013-11-20 22:13 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Calling for something to be a capital crime should be a capital crime.
  O shi-
10. Re:Capital Crime by lxs · 2013-11-20 22:24 · Score: 1
  
  Cue the YES BUT THE EVIL GUBMINT crowd.
  Sometimes identity cards are a good thing. If the mailman brings me a valuable package he'd better check my identity and not leave it on the stairs or give it to the first fool who manages to scrawl something illegible on a rain soaked piece of paper or touchscreen.
11. Re:Capital Crime by Z00L00K · 2013-11-20 22:48 · Score: 1
  
  And in the process they destroy the life of the people they did steal the identity from, therefore the means of capital crime is justifiable.
  
  --
  If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
12. Re:Capital Crime by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-21 00:37 · Score: 1
  
  However you still have to demonstrate that you did not perform the transactions and therefore have been defrauded by some John Doe
  The victim of the fraud "identity theft" is not the person whose identity got stolen. The victim is the bank: Hey BoA, I'm Sockatume. Give me $1,000. And BoA gives me $1,000. You are not involved in this fraud at all. But after this fraud, BoA will try to steal $1,000 from you. That is a second, unrelated fraud.
13. Re:Capital Crime by L.+J.+Beauregard · 2013-11-21 01:01 · Score: 1
  
  You must also think that literacy tests were about ensuring that voters could read the ballot and that poll taxes were about raising revenue.
  The purpose of "voter ID", which is the least of the shenanigans that the Plutocrat Party is pulling, is job security for the scumbag politicians who are trying to push it through.
  
  --
  Ooh, moderator points! Five more idjits go to Minus One Hell!
  Delendae sunt RIAA, MPAA et Windoze
14. Re:Capital Crime by onepoint · 2013-11-21 01:25 · Score: 1
  
  I'm not sure about the statement of Identification in the USA. I know some states require you to have some sort of ID. But then again I am not a lawyer so what do I know.
  
  --
  if you see me, smile and say hello.
15. Re:Capital Crime by Bob+the+Super+Hamste · 2013-11-21 02:04 · Score: 1
  
  I would also accept interstate wire fraud in most cases as well.
  
  --
  Time to offend someone
16. Re:Capital Crime by cayce · 2013-11-21 02:24 · Score: 1
  
  About the voter registration: http://tinyurl.com/7y484fn
  Mexico has about 95% of eligible voters on the registry (US is 66% at best), not as good as other countries, but it's not mandatory or enforced by any government agency. Argentina has a 100%, but their ID practices would be considered fascist by US standards.
  Second generation Mexican-Americans have an average of 4 more years of school than their parents. http://www.pewhispanic.org/ is an excellent source for statistics about Hispanics in the US.
17. Re:Capital Crime by IamTheRealMike · 2013-11-21 02:37 · Score: 1
  
  A lot of banks outside the EU already are pretty secure, using hardware second factors to authorize logins and wire transfers to unknown/new destinations.
  If you see bank details being sold that only have a username/password, it's probably an American bank. The 2-factor auth system used outside the USA is based on EMV (it's a variant called CAP). In the US they never deployed EMV aka chip and PIN so the banks don't have any pre-existing secure hardware issued to end users they can auth themselves with.
18. Re:Capital Crime by Jason+Levine · 2013-11-21 02:45 · Score: 1
  
  Given my experience with identity theft, I'd say a step in the right direction would be not allowing someone to sign up via a web form, get the mother's maiden name wrong, and STILL issue them a credit card.
  Of course, that's just me. Credit card companies and credit agencies actually don't care about identity theft. When it happens, they just shift the cost to the person whose identity was stolen and call it a day. If it does impact them, it falls under "cost of doing business", not "severe threat to profits" so just raise everyone's rates and you're good to go.
  
  --
  My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
19. Re:Capital Crime by green1 · 2013-11-21 03:35 · Score: 1
  
  Canadian banks all have chip and pin now too, but it is used only for debit card transactions.(Bank machines and in store purchases). I am not aware of any Canadian bank that uses anything more than account number and password to use online banking, and I know of one that required (at last check) a 4 digit purely numeric password. I am quite disappointed in the complete lack of any security for online banking and purchases in this country.
20. Re:Capital Crime by gsslay · 2013-11-21 04:25 · Score: 1
  
  Mitchell and Webb have this covered...
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS9ptA3Ya9E
21. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-21 05:33 · Score: 1
  
  It's nice to know someone else sees it :-)
22. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-21 05:53 · Score: 3
  
  Why would I, I never had any dealings with John Doe at all. I am not the one demanding money, why should the burden of proof fall to me?
  It's the bank that had unfortunate dealings with Mr. Doe and rather carelessly handed him a wad of cash without knowing who he was.
  If they want any money from me, it's up to them to prove I owe it to them. And I don't mean a piece of paper with an illegible scrawl anyone could have made, I mean actual proof. A picture of me (that actually looks like me) holding the paper and smiling might help, but given the reputation of banks (they have, after all, a history of foreclosing on homes they don't hold a loan on and many other acts of fraud) and the existence of photoshop, it wouldn't constitute absolute proof.
  At one time, banks were quite careful to avoid even the tiniest hint of impropriety and deserved a reputation for honesty so strong that often enough their word was nearly proof in itself. That day is long gone and they have well and thoroughly squandered their reputation (along with a great deal of other people's money).
23. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-21 05:54 · Score: 1
  
  Exactly.
24. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-21 05:58 · Score: 1
  
  No, the banks and credit agencies do that. Perhaps they should be put up for a capital crime.
25. Re:Capital Crime by g0bshiTe · 2013-11-21 07:10 · Score: 1
  
  The Mexican Americans have been subjected to American television which studies have shown kills more braincells than LSD.
  
  --
  I am Bennett Haselton! I am Bennett Haselton!
26. Re:Capital Crime by g0bshiTe · 2013-11-21 07:11 · Score: 1
  
  I enjoy how you could vote this last election without providing ID yet signing up for ACA I have to establish my identity by providing ID?
  
  --
  I am Bennett Haselton! I am Bennett Haselton!
27. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-21 11:44 · Score: 1
  
  You must also think that literacy tests were about ensuring that voters could read the ballot and that poll taxes were about raising revenue.
  The purpose of "voter ID", which is the least of the shenanigans that the Plutocrat Party is pulling, is job security for the scumbag politicians who are trying to push it through.
  I'm sorry, I was unclear on my statement earlier, and Slashdot doesn't have an edit button. My last sentence should have read "I wonder what Democrat politicians think the difference is between people of Mexican descent in Mexico and people of Mexican descent in the US."
  Of course, as you and I both know, Democrats are the people who supported literacy tests and poll taxes to keep African-Americans from voting, and oppose Voter ID laws so they can keep scumbag plutocrats in power.
  However, I didn't explicitly point out that I support voter ID laws in my original post, and sarcasm is notoriously hard to transmit over the internet. My apologies for the confusion.
28. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-21 12:26 · Score: 1
  
  The difference is who they have to sign up with and what requirements exist for that. It's far too easy (as history has shown in the U.S.) to slant the process so that it is a minor hassle for one demographic but a major problem for another.
29. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-21 12:36 · Score: 1
  
  My cat once got a credit card offer. I was REALLY tempted to fill it in and have her sign it with a paw print, but I just didn't need the potential hassle of trying to cancel it later.
  With that sort of thing going on, banks claims have no credibility at all.
30. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-22 00:34 · Score: 1
  
  It's far too easy (as history has shown in the U.S.) to slant the process so that it is a minor hassle for one demographic but a major problem for another.
  It's far too easy to win an election by stuffing the ballot box with votes that weren't cast by actual voters. It's also far too easy to win an election by claiming that the opponents are racist.
  If you want to talk about a specific process that you feel is slanted, I'm willing to do that, but the fact that you can come up with a theoretical implementation that "makes it a minor hassle for one demographic group but a major problem for another" doesn't validate the GPs claim that Voter ID supporters are racist.
31. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-22 05:26 · Score: 2
  
  It's not a matter of race, it's a matter of demographic. That is, adding just a bit more hassle for some demographic or another that tends to vote against your party. For example, if the elderly tend to vote against you, you insist that a presented ID be current. Easy enough (practically automatic) until you reach an age where you don't drive anymore.
32. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-22 10:30 · Score: 1
  
  The biggest (historical) attack on the electoral system relies on the vote of a specific demographic group. It turns out, if you can dig up the votes, Necro-Americans tend to vote in huge numbers for machine Democrats and incumbents generally.
  Of course, in the American electoral system, the dead aren't supposed to be voting. That's why you should have to have current IDs.
  Also, I asked for a specific example of a state Voter ID law that you claim "makes it a minor hassle for one demographic group but a major problem for another." You gave a theoretical example, and not a very good one, because no state REQUIRES a drivers' license to vote. (Several ALLOW use of a driver's license, but they all allow for other alternatives, some of which are provided for free upon request.)
  There is no principled reason to oppose Voter ID. The only two reasons to oppose Voter ID are that if you are committing election fraud, it makes it more likely that you get caught, and that if your opponent is in favor of it, you get to call them a racist. America would be better off if there were fewer people engaged in either of these activities.
33. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-22 16:16 · Score: 1
  
  I see you believe it is only democrats that play such games. The 'alternative' 'for free' IDs you speak of are not quite as convenient as a drivers license for someone who doesn't drive. I'm unsure how 'Necro-americans' are going to use an old ID anyway since they will no longer look at all like their picture. Surely voter registration is checked against death certificates.
  The U.S. has an unfortunate history of playing games with ID, poll taxes, and various tests to deny citizens their vote. In recent years it has even included false robo-calls telling people the wrong date or location.
34. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-23 03:50 · Score: 1
  
  I see you believe it is only democrats that play such games.
  No, I said "machine Democrats and incumbents generally." It's easier to steal an election by stuffing the ballot box when there's a large electoral bureaucracy/party machine in place, which tends to be in big cities. Residents of big cities tend to vote for Democrats, which leads to Democrats being in power and staffing the electoral bureaucracy, so ballot box stuffing specifically is a technique usually associated with Democrats. However, electoral fraud generally helps ALL incumbents, not just Democrats. Try reading what I actually typed.
  
  The 'alternative' 'for free' IDs you speak of are not quite as convenient as a drivers license for someone who doesn't drive.
  Given that someone doesn't drive, alternative forms of ID are absolutely more convenient than drivers licenses. Why would you need a drivers' license if you can't drive? Except for the part where they test you on your driving skills, the process for obtaining these IDs is usually exactly the same as the process for obtaining a drivers' license. You need some form of government issued ID to buy booze, get on a plane, enter a government building or open a bank account. Only driving requires an actual drivers' license.
  
  I'm unsure how 'Necro-americans' are going to use an old ID anyway since they will no longer look at all like their picture.
  Of course they can't. Requiring voter ID is a mitigation for the attack where Guy A, who is alive, casts his ballot. Then Guy A casts Guy B's ballot as well. Guy B isn't allowed to cast a ballot at all if he's dead. It's harder for Guy A to claim to be Guy B if he has to prevent valid ID to do so.
  
  Surely voter registration is checked against death certificates.
  Don't call me Shirley.
  
  The Democrat Party has an unfortunate history of playing games with ID, poll taxes, and various tests to deny citizens their vote. In recent years it has even included false robo-calls telling people the wrong date or location.
  My original point was that Voter ID laws seem to work well pretty much everywhere else that we consider a democratic government, and the only reason we don't have them here is that Democrats are too quick to call people racists. On cue, some Democrat neanderthal called me a racist and we were off to the races, so to speak.
  You haven't been able to provide an objection to a specific voter ID law. All that you've brought to this conversation is lies about history and lies about theoretical laws, rather than the real laws that are on the books, or real proposals being debated. Your posts make it obvious you're barely reading what I'm writing. You're only in this thread to subtly imply that I'm a racist. Slashdot would be better off with less trolls like you.
35. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-23 05:42 · Score: 1
  
  You misread just a bit, the 'alternative' 'free' IDS are not generally as convenient for non-drivers as a drivers license is for a driver.
  The fake robo-calls were almost universally used by non-incumbent Republicans. The correct fix for dead voters is properly cleaning up the voter registration. Unfortunately, that too has been a problem, including a distinct demographic slant to the improperly removed entries.
  As for the rest, since I have explicitly stated that race is NOT the issue, you have either confused me with someone else or you are making the most convoluted reverse race card play I have seen. I have most certainly not lied nor have I trolled. If this is going to be the tone of your replies, then make no more.
36. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-24 01:54 · Score: 1
  
  You misread just a bit, the 'alternative' 'free' IDS are not generally as convenient for non-drivers as a drivers license is for a driver.
  Again, what specifically is wrong with non-driver IDs? If they require the same steps to obtain except for the driving exam, why are they "less convenient?"
  
  reverse race card play
  Doesn't exist. The first guy who responded (note: this wasn't you) said that the people who were in favor of voter ID were people who would have been in favor of poll taxes. The people who were in favor of poll taxes and Jim Crow laws were the liberal Democrats of a generation ago. The only thing I have in common with them is the color of my skin. The statement "All white people are racist" (again, made by the first guy and not you) is itself a racist statement. There's no such thing as "reverse racism" just because it happens to Whitey.
  
  race is NOT the issue
  You keep using the phrase "demographic group," and I've largely been assuming you mean race. I'll bite. What demographic group are you claiming the voter ID laws suppress?
37. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-24 06:31 · Score: 1
  
  Whichever group tends to vote against the party in power when the law is enacted. It could be race, age, income level, or anything else they can find. It could even be urban vs rural.
  As for ID card, most people (after they get their learner's) DRIVE to the DMV for their license. If you no longer drive, it's already harder. The voter ID (unlike a driver's license) is something they would likely use once every 2 to 4 years so it's easier to just forget about it and let it expire even if you have one. It's not like people in their 60s-90s get carded a lot.
  If the people behind the voter IDs were REALLY interested in protecting the right to vote, they'd stipulate that an expired DL is good enough and if they were that worried about the picture being current, you could get a voter ID AT the polling place using your old expired ID. Then if it really needed renewal, it could be renewed when you voted.
38. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-24 09:51 · Score: 1
  
  Whichever group tends to vote against the party in power when the law is enacted. It could be race, age, income level, or anything else they can find. It could even be urban vs rural.
  So you're saying that the demographic group it hurts is "whichever group votes against the party in power?" So you're saying that you're against voter ID laws because they hurt Democrats? I'm sorry, but the Democrat Party doesn't deserve special protection under the law. Laws should apply to both parties equally.
  The fact is, the reason that people are in favor of voter ID laws is that they help prevent attacks against the voting system. The specific attacks they work against work more easily in urban areas, which tend to be controlled by Democrats. Thus, Republicans tend to be in favor of ID laws and Democrats against them. But that doesn't matter; the attacks against the voting system should be prevented because the ATTACKS disenfranchise people.
  
  The voter ID (unlike a driver's license) is something they would likely use once every 2 to 4 years
  How often do you need to prove that you're a licensed driver? I certainly vote more often than I need to show my driver's license. (Note that I'm not counting buying alcohol or getting on a plane or anything that a non-driver ID would work for because the non-driver IDs that states are issuing are valid for those purposes too.)
  
  If the people behind the voter IDs were REALLY interested in protecting the right to vote, they'd stipulate that an expired DL is good enough and if they were that worried about the picture being current...
  The purpose of requiring a VALID license is that to make sure it shows an accurate ADDRESS. If your address changes, you may live in a different electoral district and thus be an ineligible voter in the place you're trying to cast your ballot. (This is why student IDs aren't usually valid. They don't normally show your legal address. Plenty of students go away to school but keep their legal address at their parents house. You are only eligible to vote in elections from your legal address, which means you can't vote in municipal elections in the city you go to school in.)
  By stipulating that the ID can't be expired, you make sure people verify their address at whatever increment the ID expires at.
39. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-24 10:31 · Score: 1
  
  Looks like you're pretty down on the democrats there, enough that you believe they don't deserve to be protected from manipulation of voting. WOW!
  I wonder if you'll feel the same way when the Democrats are in power and want to manipulate the Voter ID. (yes, I'll oppose that too).
  How often do you make sure you're carrying your driver's license? I'm guessing every day when you drive at least.
  I don't know about your state, but in this state, unless you tell them you've moved, your VALID license will have the old address on it. They don't mail it to you, they print and laminate it right there and hand it to you still warm.
40. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-24 11:51 · Score: 1
  
  Looks like you're pretty down on the democrats there, enough that you believe they don't deserve to be protected from manipulation of voting. WOW!
  Thanks for reading. I said the Democrat Party doesn't deserve protection. You said that the demographic group of "people voting against incumbents" deserves special protection. They don't. Attacks on the voting system are wrong, and INDIVIDUALS deserve protection against those attacks, no matter which way the individuals are voting. You're calling for allowing attacks on the voting system because they help Democrats.
  
  I wonder if you'll feel the same way when the Democrats are in power and want to manipulate the Voter ID. (yes, I'll oppose that too).
  Really? Because the problem Voter ID solves is that Democrats are attacking the voting system by stuffing the ballot boxes in urban areas where they control the counting of the votes. The way they can do this is by keeping ineligible people on the rolls, so that party bosses can send a guy to vote in the name of someone who they know won't show up later and smell a rat. If you oppose this attack, as you claim to, where's your solution?
  
  How often do you make sure you're carrying your driver's license? I'm guessing every day when you drive at least.
  Never. I always carry my wallet when I leave the house, and I "know" my drivers' license is in my wallet, but I never actually check. I do, however, always check for my RFID key thing that unlocks the door to my office when I'm going to my office. I check to make sure I have money if I'm going somewhere I need to pay cash. In short, I check for the things that I need to have in order to do the thing I'm leaving my house to do. If my state required ID to vote, I'd make sure to have my ID with me. Is that what you're talking about, the fear that people might forget their ID on their kitchen table? Because they can go back and get the ID before voting.
  
  I don't know about your state, but in this state, unless you tell them you've moved, your VALID license will have the old address on it. They don't mail it to you, they print and laminate it right there and hand it to you still warm.
  In my state, you're required to update your driver's license within six months of moving to a new address, or the license automatically becomes invalid. Check on this. I bet your state is like this too.
41. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-24 17:04 · Score: 1
  
  You are required to update it at next renewal, but I've never heard of it being enforced. Meanwhile, if you're already prepared to break the law by voting in a district you're not living in, why not fail to update your DL while you're at it.
  I know Chicago had a real problem with the dead voting at one point, but otherwise there just isn't that much of a problem. I know in my state, all parties appearing on the ballot are invited to send representatives to oversee the counting.
  I'm going to go with [citation needed].
42. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-25 12:11 · Score: 1
  
  I know Chicago had a real problem with the dead voting [for Democrats] at one point...
  This is an attack against the voting system that you apparently don't oppose, despite the fact that the people affected by it are part of your nonsense demographic group of "people voting against incumbents."
  
  [citation needed]
  Go back and read the topic. You'll find the sources.
  
  I know Chicago had a real problem with the dead voting at one point, but otherwise there just isn't that much of a problem.
  Why don't you give me a citation this time? (Note: In order to back up your assertion, you would have to prove a negative, and you'd have to prove it in an area where statistics* aren't kept. Good luck with that.)
  *For obvious reasons, they don't keep statistics of people NOT caught committing crimes. In areas without Voter ID laws, it is harder to catch people committing the crime of voting illegally, and if a party is benefiting from illegal votes, they aren't going to support plans to stop the illegal voting, are they?
43. Re:Capital Crime by sjames · 2013-11-25 18:24 · Score: 1
  
  Why don't you give me a citation this time? (Note: In order to back up your assertion, you would have to prove a negative, and you'd have to prove it in an area where statistics* aren't kept. Good luck with that.)
  That would be why the onus is on you to prove your positive assertion.
44. Re:Capital Crime by jmac_the_man · 2013-11-26 00:40 · Score: 1
  
  The positive assertion you are making is "Republicans support Voter ID laws because they unfairly disenfranchise people who would be voting for Democrats." You still haven't provided any evidence.
  I asserted a bunch of things, most prominently "There is a problem where dead people are being allowed to cast votes for Democrats," for which I posted evidence that you still haven't apparently read.
  The original post was, though, was my assertion that "People of Hispanic descent are not as incapable of gaining the proper credentials to vote as the Democrats claim, and thus it is wrong for Democrats to claim that." My evidence was that Mexico, which according to Wikipedia is 80% Hispanic, requires Voter ID to vote.
  As evidence to refute this, you claimed that America has a checkered history when it comes to voting, and have posted a list of unethical things that Democrats have done to ensure their candidates win. Politicians claiming something that isn't true is unethical (as big a problem on your side of the isle as mine). Responding with a list of unethical things done by Democrats in the past doesn't counter the assertion that "The Democrats are doing something unethical now," no matter how much you wish it to be true.
  Listen, you're very clearly just trying to string me along here. Remember how you claimed not to be trolling before? You can drop that facade now. If you want to provide any evidence as to what you've been saying (which I've been asking for since your first post here), I'd love to see it. The only thing I will respond to at this point is evidence that a specific voter ID law is disenfranchising people. Otherwise, I'm done with your damn games.
I want to cut out the middle man by the_Bionic_lemming · 2013-11-20 18:10 · Score: 5, Funny

I'd like to cut out the middle man and sell my Identity.
40 bucks buys a few cases of beer - just sayin...

--
_ _ _ Go for the eyes Boo! GO FOR THE EYES!
velocity limits by db10 · 2013-11-20 18:25 · Score: 1

Credit cards have velocity limits to minimize exposure. Max amount per time period, max number of withdrawals per time period, etc. Hence, the risk isn't worth the reward.
1. Re:velocity limits by ColdWetDog · 2013-11-20 21:03 · Score: 1
  
  You haven't seem my wife with my credit card. The velocity limit appears to be on the order of 186,000 miles/sec.
  
  --
  Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
Re:Hurry up and sign up for ObamaCare by AK+Marc · 2013-11-20 18:36 · Score: 2

Too late, I have had private insurance for years.

--
Learn to love Alaska
Take Mine For Free by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-20 20:09 · Score: 5, Funny

Here, take my identity, please!
You get to assume a recent bankruptcy, a child support obligation, a spotty employment record, a sub-500 credit score, three maxed-out credit cards, a beater car, and a psychotic ex-wife.
Clean arrest record and a good tech education, though. Maybe you could apply to a NSA contractor.
1. Re: Take Mine For Free by tleaf100 · 2013-11-20 23:07 · Score: 1
  
  ahh,one of the advantages of being poor,no worries about id theft,i'm hoping someone does my id and feels sorry for me and puts some cash IN my account!!!. thats what need,online version of tv program called secret millionaire,but done anonymously..
2. Re:Take Mine For Free by Jason+Levine · 2013-11-21 02:53 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  Clean arrest record and a good tech education, though
  Sadly, there's more than just financial identity theft. There's criminal identity theft also. Here's how it works:
  1) Criminal arrested for some crime.
  2) Criminal gives your name/SSN/DOB/etc to the police.
  3) Arrest goes onto your criminal record and not the real criminal's record.
  Now you go for a job interview and your potential employer runs a background check. Suddenly, they find out that you've committed felonies across three states and were arrested nine times. You don't get that job offer - or any other one. Plus, if the local police stop you for any reason, they'll find out you're a "felon" and will treat you as such. No matter how many times you try to clear this up, if even one database still links you to the crimes, it will flow back over and start again.
  At one point, I was following the blog of someone who had this happen to him. He couldn't find a job, was being harassed by police, and nobody would help him. All this.despite the fact that the photo of "him" at the arrest was clearly not really him. People just trusted what was "in the system" even if the system seemed wrong. Last I heard, after years of struggling, he had finally gotten some people to listen and begin the process of clearing his record.
  It's insane that one criminal with a stolen identity could ruin someone's life like this but it does happen.
  
  --
  My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
3. Re:Take Mine For Free by maestroX · 2013-11-21 03:40 · Score: 1
  
  CoastieThaMostie, is that you?
4. Re:Take Mine For Free by ub3r+n3u7r4l1st · 2013-11-21 04:51 · Score: 1
  
  A national guaranteed job program (or employer of last resort) will solve all this issue. Not to mention it will reduce recidivism rate. But of course some "religious" people will outright object, even though their scripture said otherwise.
  Most people wants to work for the check. Unemployment is not a choice, despite what the mainstream media told you.
  
  --
  New Economic Perspectives
5. Re:Take Mine For Free by Jason+Levine · 2013-11-21 05:10 · Score: 1
  
  It might solve the problem of "no employer wants to hire you because some criminal committed crimes and then said he was you", but it doesn't solve the root problem of "criminal can say he is X and now the real X's record contains his conviction." There's got to be some way for police to verify identity or, at the very least, some standard way of flagging when erroneous IDs are made. The current system of "we don't believe that the system is wrong and that you aren't a criminal because our system says you are a criminal" just doesn't work.
  
  --
  My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
Card Theft by nuckfuts · 2013-11-20 21:15 · Score: 3, Funny

Reminds me of the time my brother had his wallet stolen. When I asked him if he cancelled his credit card, he said "Hell no! The thieves are spending less than my wife usually does".
No NSA joke? by Sockatume · 2013-11-20 21:42 · Score: 3, Insightful

It's time to get the government out of the identity theft business, as it is clearly wildly distorting the market.

--
No kidding!!! What do you say at this point?
Re:Hurry up and sign up for ObamaCare by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-20 21:51 · Score: 4, Funny

Don't you know private industry is the epitome of security and efficiency? That's why the private sector is never plagued by budget overruns or mismanagement.
Why do you hate America, you filthy communist?
Re:Hurry up and sign up for ObamaCare by benjfowler · 2013-11-20 22:24 · Score: 1

... as opposed to the lowest (private sector) bidder. Great choice.
Need To Flood Market With Fake Identities by retroworks · 2013-11-21 00:11 · Score: 5, Interesting

It should be easy enough for someone here to harvest phonebook or other records from 70 years ago, refresh and randomize birth dates, and begin to flood the identity theft market with fake personalities and random government identity records. That would greatly increase the amount of work for identity thieves, who actually benefit from passwords (which provide evidence it's bonafide identity they are stealing). For years I've promoted "camouflage" rather than invisibility. I now think the reason it has not taken off (disappearance of AntiPhorm?) is that it's equally a threat to Google, Bing, and advertising-based search engines. We can be less careful of our "identity needles" if we construct bigger "digital haystacks".
See article on digital haystacks and cookie camouflage http://retroworks.blogspot.com/2010/09/simpler-ideas-cookie-camouflage-digital.html
Oh, by the way, I'm not really Retroworks. I find I get higher mods if I steal a /. identity rather than to submit AC

--
Gently reply
1. Re:Need To Flood Market With Fake Identities by AthanasiusKircher · 2013-11-21 06:10 · Score: 2
  
  It should be easy enough for someone here to harvest phonebook or other records from 70 years ago, refresh and randomize birth dates, and begin to flood the identity theft market with fake personalities and random government identity records.
  I get what you're saying here, and perhaps it could have some benefits.
  
  For years I've promoted "camouflage" rather than invisibility. I now think the reason it has not taken off (disappearance of AntiPhorm?) is that it's equally a threat to Google, Bing, and advertising-based search engines. We can be less careful of our "identity needles" if we construct bigger "digital haystacks".
  See article on digital haystacks and cookie camouflage http://retroworks.blogspot.com/2010/09/simpler-ideas-cookie-camouflage-digital.html
  I'm less clear about how your proposed ideas work in practice when I read your link.
  I understand how it might serve to hide and distort data about your searching and browsing habits if your computer randomly searched and browsed for other things in the background. But it has some pitfalls.
  For one, I would never consider using such a system unless it had definitely solved the "child porn problem." What happens if your computer goes surfing on some "bad" sites in the background, and naughty stuff ends up on your computer? I'd really love to hear try to defend yourself when law enforcement comes knocking -- "But it wasn't me! My computer was surfing for kiddie porn!"
  And while that may be the worst problem, there are other places on the internet that could potentially get you in trouble if you frequent them too much. That's always the problem with the "if everyone has drunken photos on Facebook, nobody will care" arguments. Yes, maybe that will eventually be true in few decades, but for now, people who want to use such things against you won't care about what other people do. Someone who wants to "get you" or maybe just find a way to throw you out of the resume pile for job applications will only care about the bad stuff that they can find. Whether it's representative of you or not, it won't matter. It's just like cops and the thousands of random laws on the books -- chances are that you're committing some breach of the law right now in some obscure statute. Having too many laws doesn't obscure those: it makes them all the more problematic because any one of them might be held against you at some point. Similarly, if your data is "camoflaged" well enough on your hard drive, law enforcement will probably claim that any of that mess might belong to you... including any weird, naughty, or potentially illegal places your "computer" may have decided to visit randomly.
  Now, I suppose you might say that you have some sort of "key file" somewhere that shows your legitimate personal search history. First, I think that you'd be hard-pressed to explain that to law enforcement, but even if you could, it introduces a significant vulnerability in your system. Anyone with access to that file knows your real search history, making your system useless. You might as well just use an encrypted drive or directory for your searches, with that sort of failure point.
  Finally, your solution sounds possible if you just want to keep companies from tracking random browsing habits, but I'm not really sure what that has to do with avoiding identity theft. It's not like your computer will randomly log into fake bank accounts in the background or something. If someone's going to steal personal data that's critical to identity theft, they're going to be looking for your access to particular sorts of sites (banks, retailers, etc.), and you won't have "fake access" to those sites to disguise your real transactions.
  So how exactly do you "camouflage" any of your legitimate significant financial transactions: the ones that any ID theft person might actually b
2. Re:Need To Flood Market With Fake Identities by ottothecow · 2013-11-21 07:02 · Score: 1
  
  This seems like a decent short term business model. I wonder how many identities and credit card numbers you could sell (for bitcoins of course) before people realized that every single one was bad (at least with stolen CC numbers, you expect many to be no good when you buy then) and stopped purchasing from you? And how many times could you repeat this under a new name?
  
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  Bottles.
3. Re:Need To Flood Market With Fake Identities by psithurism · 2013-11-21 08:22 · Score: 1
  
  From your blog:
  
  Who develops software? The same people who make money on our searches...the people who develop software aren't going to develop that program
  You are never going to find helpful developers with an attitude like that. I don't work for a web advertiser, in fact of the 100s of professional software acquaintances I have, only two work with google, and they aren't in search or advertising. We are people too. We have varied political opinions and we have identities of our own to protect. We use and write whatever software we believe will be best for ourselves and others. There is no conspiracy against implementing your ideas, we just find them less practical than the ideas that we do implement. In fact, if you'd like your ideas implemented, but have somehow alienated all the developers around you: http://www.codeacadamy.com./
  Besides, developers _have_ released tools for your ideas, but people just don't use them. For one example: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/trackmenot/. I built myself a similar program so I could better control the searches it was making. I thought it solved the "child porn problem" AthanasiusKircher was talking about, but the right combination of innocent words can still be used against you (plus it doesn't hide my cookie dough fetish). The other problem pointed out by the other poster, but also confirmed in practice by me, is that sort of people who are going to go through your search history don't care what chance there was that you visited a websites or your camouflager did. Depending on their motives, they will raise 3 times the shit storm or serve you three times the ads when they find you are searching ramen noodle fetishes and fruit fly sex on top of cookie dough pounding.
  Back to your post:
  
  flood the identity theft market with fake personalities
  
  You first have to penetrate into the market place and earn some street cred pedaling and buying good identities. Easy to say, but I hear it's rather long and involved to do. Then, you can start mixing your fake identities in with the real ones. Except, you quickly blow the trust you earned with your buyers and have to go back to step one. If you are the FBI, it would be easier to immediately arrest everyone who bought the fake identities, rather than having to supply enough real identities so that sellers don't catch on.
  Before blaming everyone else for conspiring not to implement your ideas, go try them yourself, you'll discover they aren't really as easy as writing a blog post. Also, know that this is what you sound like to us with the ability to implement your ideas. http://xkcd.com/793/
Forgot My Password by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-21 03:36 · Score: 1

This is great news, I forgot my banking password. Now I can get it back at bargain basement prices!
Botnets for Bitcoins Don't Work Well Any More by billstewart · 2013-11-21 06:41 · Score: 1

When Bitcoin was new, you could successfully mine bitcoins using your CPU. But the parameters on Bitcoin keep making the amount of computation higher, and these days the CPUs have been left in the dust, GPU-based miners are getting passé, and it takes ASICs to really keep up. Part of that's competitive speed, and part of it's the cost of electricity, which as a botnet herder you don't actually care about, but you've got to have a mining client that can run on the GPU without being noticed, so it can't run if the user is doing graphics-intensive GPU stuff. Harder to hide that without being detected.

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Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
Re:Hurry up and sign up for ObamaCare by g0bshiTe · 2013-11-21 06:57 · Score: 1

It's the Fed's answer to bypassing HIPAA laws, and a method by which the Fed can bypass Dr patient confidentiality. Now they know you were prescribed Paxil 15 years ago and can use that as an excuse to separate you from your 2nd amendment rights or probable cause for a search of your house, or they know you tell your Dr you regularly smoke weed.

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I am Bennett Haselton! I am Bennett Haselton!