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Computer Identity Theft - Emails And Confidence Tricksters

Author: AdrianFletcher
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As more and more people get personal computers and an internet connection the potential for identity theft increases. Olden day identity theft might have involved going through someone's garbage looking for personal details like their social security or credit card numbers. Today, with the help of a computer and some fake email ids, an identity thief can gain access to the same information. This can be done on a worldwide scale and opens up the potential of such a crime. In fact, identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the past few years.

You may think that computer identity theft is a high tech crime (and in some cases it is) but the reality is that most of it is the simplest of crimes. It is simply a confidence trick that relies on lowering our guard by a variety of psychological tricks that have a deep understanding of human nature.

So, the most common types of identity theft target an individuals fear or greed. These are two very powerful emotions that will make people take action. Once these emotions are triggered, the identity theft simply tells the potential victim what to do.

A fear that many people have when they use a computer and the internet is that they may be at risk to identity theft. They understand the potential risk and think that the theft may involve hacking into their computer. Although they don't know exactly how this might happen they try to remain vigilant. This fear is indulged and amplified by identity theft criminals. So when an email arrives that mentions that your bank account was hacked into, all the alarm bells go off. The email suggests you change your password immediately.

After the initial shock you begin to wonder what has happened to the account - has money been taken out ? You first reaction is to login to your account and see what the damage might be. This is also the advice you will get in the email and they also make it convenient for you to login to your account by providing a login box below the letter.

The email looks genuine. The logo at the head of the mail is the bank's logo. The wording of the email has that official sound to it. Some people may fall for this but if you look slightly closer at the mail you will see some things that don't seem to add up. The sending email address has a yahoo suffix to it. The name of the person and title of the person signing the email don't quite sound right. You are wise to be wary.

Phishing scams work by presenting an official looking email or directing the intended victim to an authentic looking website. This is the process of building trust or confidence. With trust established the thief will ask for important details from the potential victim. This may be anything from bank account details to a social security number. They can then wreak havoc on their finances or apply for things like credit cards using their identity.

Most companies will never ask for personal details over the internet or via an email. If you get an email like this then delete it. If you are asked to give information over the web then make sure the website is secure. Common methods of determining this are to look for 'https' at the start of the address. Also the page should mention that it is secure. This may be explicitly stated or maybe a lock logo will be at the top or bottom of the screen. Clicking on the lock will give you more details of how their web page is secure.