By Scott Aurnou
In 2012, a young scam artist based in Asia posing as a private investigator simply purchased the personal information for more than 200 million users directly from credit reporting giant Experian and then posted it for sale online. The only reason we know about the incident is that the U.S. Secret Service caught it. Experian didn’t.
Cyber criminals know that the weakest link in most computer networks is the people using it. Verizon’s highly respected Data Breach Investigations Report has repeatedly noted that most attacks start with employees. Attackers use “social engineering” to trick their victims into allowing unauthorized system access, data theft and even specialized stealthy attacks used to quietly steal massive amounts of sensitive data over time. These attacks frequently exploit our natural tendency to want to help others. They can be in person, electronic or over the telephone, and there are a variety of ways they can be used to take advantage of you:
“Phishing” attacks are designed to steal your personal, financial or log-in information through an email, text message (referred to as “smishing”) or even an automated phone call (“vishing”). The attacks often appear to come from well-known and trusted companies like banks, airlines or industry groups and contain attachments or links to websites that look legitimate but are really there to steal account log-in information or host malware ready to attack the recipient’s computer as soon as he clicks on any of the links. These emails and messages can also be used to lure victims into contact with scam artists posing as potential clients or officials offering to release substantial funds if only the target would be so kind as to hand over detailed personal information or a sum up front.
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