- What to Do
- Techniques Used by Identity Thieves
If you’re the victim of Identity Theft, you’re not alone! The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports Identity Theft has been the top consumer complaint for the past 15 years. The Commission received more than 330,000 complaints in 2014.
What to Do
Contact us
INB is here to help you when it comes to any infringements on your banking accounts. As soon as you’re aware that someone has stolen your identity, contact us. We’ll help you take the steps you need to secure the money you’ve entrusted with us.
Use FTC’s interactive website
The FTC recently put together a comprehensive, easy-to-follow plan and interactive website for anyone who is the victim of identity theft. The site includes a checklist with steps to take as soon as you’re made aware of identity theft, as well as what to do as the days go by. The site provides web links to all the resources you should need, as well as sample letters you can copy when connecting with specified agencies. The site even offers tips for specific forms of identity theft such as tax-related or medical identity theft.
You may also want to check out the government’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. The site is maintained in partnership with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C).
Techniques Used by Identity Thieves
Bogus job offers: By advertising jobs that don’t exist, criminals accumulate applicants' personal data.
Breach exploitation: Exploiting security breaches is easy when criminals publish limited amounts of personal information such as names, addresses, Social Security number or credit card numbers.
Dumpster diving: Going through the trash for personal information. To avoid being the victim of dumpster diving, always dispose of personal papers properly. If you don’t have a personal shredder, INB routinely holds Shred Events.
Hacking: Criminals hack systems and databases to obtain large quantities of personal data.
Phishing: Impersonating trusted organizations such as INB via emails, text messages, phone calls or other forms of communication in order to dupe victims into disclosing their personal information or login credentials.
Retrieving personal data from IT equipment and storage media: Make sure PCs, servers, PDAs, mobile phones, USB memory sticks and hard drives are cleaned of personal data and disposed of properly.
Pickpocketing, burglary or mail theft: Stealing bank or credit cards, identification cards, passports, authentication tokens.
Shoulder surfing: Observing users typing their login credentials, credit/calling card numbers, etc. into mobile phones and notebook computers.
Spyware: Stealing personal information from computers using breaches in browser security or malware.
Social networking: Browsing social networks for personal details published by users, often using this information to appear more credible in subsequent social engineering activities.