MCAFEE, INC. LAUNCHES THE FIRST COMPREHENSIVE PERSONAL IDENTITY PROTECTION PRODUCT FROM A LEADING SECURITY COMPANY

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SANTA CLARA, Calif., July 14, 2010 – McAfee, Inc. (NYSE: MFE), the world’s largest dedicated security company, today announced that it has launched McAfee® Identity Protection, one of the most comprehensive and easy to use identity protection services on the market. The product features proactive identity surveillance which keeps consumers’ identities safe by providing multiple layers of protection, including monitoring the major credit reporting agencies and public records as well as Internet scanning for indicators of identity theft.

Javelin Research reports that individuals who took six or more months to detect fraud suffered more than 14 times the cost of those victims who discovered fraud in its early stages.1 McAfee Identity Protection alerts users of potential threats to their identities, ultimately saving them both time and money.

“There have been more victims of identity theft in the last year than any other time in the past six years2 and consumers repeatedly rank identity theft as a top concern because of the substantial remediation costs,” said Todd Gebhart, executive vice president of McAfee consumer, mobile and small business. “To address this market need, McAfee has created a product that is truly customer-focused and proactive. We put victims first, offering a best-in-class fraud resolution service that provides unlimited support, and the strongest collection of identity monitoring and alerting capabilities in the industry. In combination with a McAfee PC security suite, McAfee Identity Protection offers complete personal and online identity protection.”

Industry Statistics

  • 59 percent of identity theft happens through lost or stolen wallets and criminals ‘dumpster diving’ to get financial records and other sensitive personal information3
  • The average fraud amount per victim is $4,8414
  • 50 percent of victims do not discover  that someone has stolen their identity for  several months or years, according to the 2009 ITRC Aftermath Study
  • For as little as $20, criminals can purchase a fake Social Security card at “ID mills” around the country5
  • Every year, the Social Security Administration (SSA) receives eight to nine million earnings reports where the name doesn’t match the Social Security number6

Consumers at Risk:  McAfee Identity Theft Risk Assessment Tool Findings

McAfee also released findings from its Identity Theft Risk Assessment Tool, a free service that can help consumers determine how they are leaving themselves and their identities at risk. McAfee evaluated responses over a nine-month time frame with more than 5,743 participants:

  • 47 percent of respondents carry their Social Security card with them at all times. Experts say this is alarming, as lost/stolen wallets account for a large portion of identity theft
  • 88 percent of consumers have responded to emails and instant messages from people they do not know. McAfee Labs researchers warn against this, as cybercriminals develop elaborate scams to steal consumers’ information through email scams

McAfee Identity Protection Key Benefits

McAfee is the only company to offer a full range of identity protection services including credit and public records monitoring, Internet scanning, alerts, lost wallet protection, identity restoration services, a $1 million product guarantee, and Internet security products to address online identity theft.

Comprehensive Detection: The proactive identity surveillance capability constantly scans multiple sources for indicators of identity theft. This includes millions of Internet black market sites, chat rooms, blogs, and emails where identity thieves obtain stolen personal information. Additional monitoring of public records and change of address databases assists in the early warning of potential identity theft.  McAfee Identity Protection also includes daily monitoring of all three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) to quickly detect and alert consumers to any red flags associated with their credit file such as new account creation or delinquent payments.  

Effortless Protection Against Theft: McAfee Identity Protection is designed to give consumers an effortless way to protect themselves and quickly resolve issues associated with their identity. The product will alert users by email or text when potentially suspicious activity is detected, and lost wallet protection helps users safeguard their credit/debit card accounts by assisting customers in canceling and ordering replacement cards.  McAfee Identity Protection also allows customers to stay on top of their credit reports with unlimited access to Experian credit reports.

Complete Resolution and $1 Million Product Guarantee: Dedicated fraud resolution experts work with consumers beginning to end to help fix identity theft issues. McAfee Identity Protection is designed to provide peace of mind and also includes a $1 million product guarantee if the product fails and a subscriber is ever victimized while his or her membership is active.

Easy to Use: Leveraging McAfee’s expertise in creating consumer-friendly security products, McAfee Identity Protection features an intuitive interface that clearly displays users’ personal identity health as well as actions required. The Web-based McAfee Identity Protection requires no software installation and is available anywhere with an Internet connection.

McAfee Identity Protection is priced at $109.99 for an annual subscription, or $9.99 on a monthly basis for an individual account. Consumers can also select the family option which includes coverage for the subscriber, another adult in the household and children for an annual subscription of $199.99 or $16.99 on a monthly basis. McAfee expects to offer product bundles of McAfee Identity Protection with McAfee core security products in the second half of this year.

McAfee Identity Protection was co-developed with Experian’s ProtectMyID.com™, a leading, full-service provider of identity theft detection, protection and fraud resolution. McAfee is not a credit repair organization and McAfee Identity Protection is not a credit repair service. McAfee Identity Protection cannot remove legitimate credit history information from a consumer’s credit report.

McAfee Taps Identity Theft Expert Robert Siciliano

McAfee also announced it has recruited leading identity theft expert and author, Robert Siciliano, as a McAfee consultant and identity protection expert. Mr. Siciliano consulted on the development of McAfee Identity Protection product, and will continue to team with McAfee to drive awareness about identity theft risks. Consumers can read his blog at www.mcafee.com/id-theft-expert.

“I’ve been in the business for more than two decades and I’ve watched identity thieves become increasingly savvy and relentless,” said Siciliano. “The tales I’ve heard would boggle your mind. Most of the time, consumers don’t even know they’ve been victimized, making the damages more devastating and increasing the hours it takes to resolve the issue. In some case, it can take up to three years to clear your name. Consumers have to wake-up to the dangers.”

School volunteers face background checks

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All across the country one by one school, administrators are slowly beginning to recognize the need to perform background checks on volunteers.

In Albany County WY, “under the tentative policy, all volunteers would complete an information form when they begin their volunteer work. Additionally, volunteers would undergo screening through the Wyoming Department of Family Services and a to-be-selected national database if they volunteer more than an hour a week on average, accompany students on an overnight trip, spend more than five days working as a volunteer coach or accompany students on any off-campus activity in which they would be alone with students. School principals would also have the authority to request the screening of any volunteer.”

As stated in the article policies like this  are designed to identify the criminal and sexual offense background of potential volunteers.

When a lion is hungry it seeks out a smaller, weaker and slower animals that it feels it has the power to capture and kill. This is a normal and natural evolution of life. Sadly, as with predators in the wild, predators in “civilization” act much the same and seek out their prey in much the same way.

Any time an adult is  positioned to work alongside children in any capacity it is essential that adult is fully checked to determine any prior history of wrong doing that may affect the safety and security of a child.

Robert Siciliano is a Personal Security Expert and Adviser to Intelius.com. For more information see Intelius background checks to learn more. See him discussing Dating Security on E! True Hollywood Stories.  (Disclosures)

Introducing Robert Siciliano – Identity Theft Expert and McAfee Consultant

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Growing up in and around Boston, Massachusetts, I encountered enough urban crime to understand the importance of self-defense from an early age. I studied several forms of defensive training and soon began a career helping others improve their own personal safety. My life became a study of the fundamental principles of personal security, particularly in regard to violence and theft prevention.

I’ve Been a Victim Too
In the mid ‘90s, my small business qualified for merchant status and began accepting Visa, MasterCard and American Express. Within weeks my business received its first fraudulent credit card order. Because the money was ultimately coming out of my pocket, I subsequently tracked the criminal down at home, and over the years I went on to investigate and expose many others who had targeted my business.

A Friend’s Story
Around the year 2000, a good friend’s identity was stolen. A woman had stolen her mail and used her personal information to open a charge card at a local retail chain. My friend got a phone call notifying her that $3000.00 in curtains were ready for pick up. At the time, identity theft was so new that law enforcement wasn’t sure how to respond. But after we found out where the curtains were supposed to end up, law enforcement checked on the address and discovered that the woman who lived there had 45 prior convictions for fraud. She was arrested and eventually prosecuted, but only received a one year suspended sentence.

My Life’s Mission
I knew then that identity theft was on its way to becoming a major ongoing threat. From the late 90’s up through the present I’ve witnessed the exploding growth of identity theft fueled by Internet access, the overuse and availability of Social Security numbers, the speed of technology outpacing that of security, and a fundamentally flawed system of identification.

Personal security has evolved beyond smash and grabs in the physical world to criminal hackers and identity thieves in the virtual world. This new breed of criminal is savvy and technologically proficient, and is able to find the holes and flaws in our existing systems. The rise of the identity thief has resulted in a global crisis, in which anyone can pose as anyone else, at any time, for any reason. From simple credit card fraud to an adult stealing a child’s identity or a terrorist using your data to enter the country, identity theft is as close as it gets to the perfect crime.

Robert Siciliano – Identity Theft Expert and McAfee Consultant on Security Insights Blog

Sex Offender Sets Up Facebook Page Looking For Love

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A sex offender, who spent 11 years in a court-ordered treatment program to rehabilitate him, is looking for a relationship via Facebook.

Facebook is approaching the 500 million member mark worldwide. Chances are there are a few sex offenders in there somewhere. I’d guess anywhere between 1 and 3 percent have a penchant for violating another persons sanctity. Statistically out of the 300 million people in the U.S., there are 500,000 registered sex offenders. Of those registered, thousands more aren’t and many haven’t been caught. You do the math.

He’s 29, so he was in detention since he was 18. His mom must be proud. He was found guilty of sexually assaulting girls. If I was one of the girl’s dads I’d be “friending” this dude to know what he is up to.

He has now set up a Facebook page, with a picture of pop singer Pink, in a bid to date women. Sounds like a real interesting guy.

The Herald Sun pointed out that 3 of his 12 online friends have profile photographs on his page which include children. Just ducky.

Be careful who you friend. They really are out there. Living breathing whacky predators.

Robert Siciliano is a Personal Security Expert and Adviser to Intelius.com. See him discussing Sex Offenders on Fox Boston.

For more information see Intelius at Sex Offender Check and Date Check to reduce your chances of encountering a bad guy. (Disclosures)

How Secure Are You And That ATM Transaction?

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ATM fraud is more common and likely than a crime committed directly against customers who are in the process of attempting to withdraw cash from the machines, according to NetworkWorld.

When studying “emergency PIN technologies” they state fraud was one of the few concrete conclusions from a report about the use of emergency technology at ATMs issued by the Federal Trade Commission.

Meanwhile reports indicate that thieves used “skimmer” devices to steal $217,000 from Long Island Banks between April and the end of May 2010. Banking information was then re-encoded onto the magnetic strips of blank gift cards. Investigators report that the thefts occurred in Suffolk County, N.Y. They estimate that between 100 and 200 accounts may have been cloned.

The ATM is all about quick easy cash. In the world of technology, when “quick” is paired with “easy” there is a sacrifice made in regards to security. Security is often slow and difficult and most people won’t sacrifice convenience for personal security.

Certainly there is a degree of security in ATMs, but to make them fully secure requires the end user to do more, and unfortunately users often don’t have the ability to jump through all the hoops security requires.

However by understanding some of the risks and incorporating some security tips you can protect yourself.

Always be vigilant when you are at an ATM. Look around the perimeter of the kiosk and beware of anyone paying unwanted attention. If someone is “lurking” they could be waiting to pounce or are shoulder surfing to get your PIN code.

Choose a PIN that’s not easily guessed but can be quickly entered.  Consecutive numbers or the same numbers is never a good idea. Often new ATMs won’t allow you to choose a “soft” PIN anyway.

Don’t ever let anyone help you at an ATM. It’s hard to envision what kind of scenario might involve another person intervening at an ATM. But consider this: Your card gets stuck, someone graciously peeks their head over your shoulder to help. They un–stick your card and help you finish the transaction. In the process they got your PIN and swapped your card with another.

In another example two women picked up drunk guys from bars who were waiting for a cab and persuaded them to pull money out of their ATMs while they watched for the PINs. Once they got back to the car one, while making out with him, would pick his pocket and hand off the card to the friend.

Beware of ATM skimming and be able to recognize what an ATM skimmer looks like. Here are some excellent pictures of a well made covert skimming device attached to the face of an ATM. You really need to look for it to recognize it. Not all are as well crafted, but some are very good. ATM skimming of course is when the information on the back of your card is “skimmed” and the criminal then burns the data onto another card and makes withdrawals.

They may have also installed a camera behind a brochure holder, speaker, mirror or in a light bar. If you ever get a vibe that something doesn’t feel right, just leave. Always shield the ATM keypad with your second before entering your PIN.

Meanwhile Romanian Police raided 38 locations and arrested five fraudsters allegedly part of a card cloning gang. Those detained face accusations of being members of an organized crime group, unauthorized access to a computer system, possessing card-cloning equipment, access device fraud and distributing fake electronic-payment devices. Based on this video, they didn’t get a whole lot of equipment but confiscated some cash.

To help combat this type of crime, ADT unveiled the ADT Anti-Skim ATM Security Solution, which helps prevent skimming attempts and detects skimming devices on all major ATM makes and models.

ADT’s anti-skim solution is installed inside an ATM near the card reader, making it invisible from the outside. The solution detects the presence of foreign devices placed over or near an ATM card entry slot, without disrupting the customer transaction or operation of most ATMs. It can trigger a silent alarm for command center response and coordinate video surveillance of all skimming activities. Also, the technology helps prevent card-skimming attempts by interrupting the operation of an illegal card reader.

This technology does not require any software adjustments be made to the ATM itself, and does not connect to or affect the ATM communications network. Prior to its North American introduction, the ADT Anti-Skim ATM Security Solution was successfully field tested on dozens of ATMs of four major U.S. financial institutions in controlled pilot programs. Testing pilots yielded positive results, with no known skimming compromises occurring.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to ADT Home Security Source discussing ATM skimming on Extra TV. Disclosures.

Renting and Securing an Apartment

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The time has come to leave the nest. The little birdie has to spread its wings and fly on their own whether they like it or not.  The process is often overwhelming and difficult and the results can end up being great or awful. But knowing what you’re getting yourself into ahead of time can save you all kinds of headaches down the road.

Check the crime climate of the city/town/neighborhood you are considering moving to.  Often we make moving decisions based on convenience and price.  However consider spending a little more (or even less) if another location is safer but less convenient.

Protect your identity. Landlords almost always ask for a Social Security Number in order to check an applicant’s credit prior to considering them for a move. It is generally not an option to say NO. However by investing in a credit freeze or credit monitoring you can reduce your risks that the Social Security Number will be used for identity theft.

Check out potential roommates. I did the roommate thing throughout my entire 20’s. I had the best and the worst roommates of all times. Some, I am friends with today and others, I wish I never met. There are numerous considerations to be made. The most important consideration is your personal security. Do a background check before signing a lease with a potential roommate.  Determine if they have any type of a criminal history. A background check may also determine if they have even been bankrupt.

Ask the landlord about options for installing an apartment security alarm for maximum safety. Apartment security systems today are easy to install for a do-it-yourselfer or certified alarm dealer. Often they require minimal wiring which means the landlord should have a problem with it. Wireless home alarms are even easier and only require batteries and two sided tape. If the landlord opposes an apartment security system, then the apartment is the right fit for you.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to Home Security Source discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston.

Mortgage Fraud and Identity Theft: Like Chocolate and Peanut Butter

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Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Expert

You don’t need to own a house to become a victim of mortgage fraud. Heck, you don’t even need to be older than 3 to be a victim. As long as the thief has a Social Security number, they can apply for loans in your name.

Lexis-Nexis Mortgage Asset Research Institute in Chicago shows that the incidence of fraud in 2009 increased 7 percentage points over 2008’s levels. In 2008, fraud reports rose 26 percentage points from the previous year. The institute collects and provides data – suspicious-activities reports, or SARS – to subscribers, including mortgage lenders. If you want to compare numbers, there were 67,190 such reports collected in 2009, compared with 63,713 in 2008, and 46,717 in 2007. The 2009 increase was small, but officials say they believe a lot of scam artists are going high-tech.

Law enforcement activities surrounding mortgage fraud across the U.S. have resulted in the arrest of thousands, according to reports. The utility of Social Security numbers as a means to obtain credit fuels the pervasiveness of mortgage fraud.

Some of the most devastating instances of mortgage fraud involve identity theft. Consumers not only have to be leery of questionable mortgage lenders, but also of others who might buy a home in their name.

Data from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has revealed that instances of suspected mortgage fraud have risen by 1,000 percent over the past six to seven years, reported the article in thisisyourmoney.co.uk, which went on to say the FBI’s financial crimes section has seen an 800 percent increase in its case load since 2003.

The apparent spike in mortgage fraud reveals one more line of attack that thieves exploit to hijack the financial identities of consumers.

The results of a research investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation recently revealed an apparent, significant upward trend in the incidence of mortgage fraud. Furthermore, homeowners who have Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs) are prime targets for financial fraud, suggested a related statement from the Identity Theft Assistance Center (ITAC).

The best way to combat the threat is to transform Social Security numbers into something useless to thieves, who use these universal identifiers to obtain financial identities. Social Security numbers’ de facto role as universal identifiers has fueled a massive increase in financial fraud—simply because these numbers allow criminals to assume others’ identities. Given the scope of financial fraud, which costs billions of dollars every year, consumers need a way to deprive thieves of the ability to gain access to someone else’s finances. They must implement measures that render those Social Security numbers useless to thieves.

Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)
Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing the Social Security numbers on Fox News.

Beware of Facebook Dangers

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Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Expert

Danger!! How’s that for a blog title that screams fear, uncertainty and doubt!? Fact is Facebook boast 400 million users and is in so many ways seems out of the control of its founder, and is looking dangerous. This is a company that has grown faster than fast and has a (very intelligent) 20 something CEO just out of puberty calling the shots. It seems the amount they (his Board? CIO? ) lets him run at the mouth that privacy is no big deal, shows an immature lack of control over this operation. Any company that wields this much power needs to be checked and balanced.

Their growing pains are publicly played out in numerous lawsuits and visceral rants by every possible pundit (like me) and privacy professional on the block.

Sure when you are that big there will always be someone who wants to take you down. But every week there is a new story about a security breach or a privacy violation. That tells me it’s more than growing pains or jealousy. There are serious management problems there resulting in reputation issues for the company and for the user, security issues.

DANGER, DANGER!

The 3rd party applications in the form of games and quizzes are sharing data that’s not meant to be shared. While the user may agree to the terms of service, they aren’t reading the fine print. Is it really in Facebook’s interest to allow this?

Seems like every 2 weeks they change whatever privacy settings there are and the public gets more pissed off with each change. Why doesn’t someone inside this company have a clue what the public wants? What’s more obvious is they don’t care!

Criminals and scammers set up fake profiles of companies and individuals all day every day. These social media identity theft profiles are designed to get people to provide data for free gift cards or other offers that ultimately allow for financial fraud to occur. Is there no way they can more effectively police this?

Recently, the chat feature was made public. For a period of time users chats were available for anyone to see. They had to shut it down to calm the mess. How the heck does that happen? Don’t they have redundancy built in to prevent this?

Ads appearing on Facebook are sanctioned in some way by Facebook and some are malicious. When clicked they can infect your PC. You would think that a private company worth billions would have systems in place to prevent its users from getting hacked via ads placed on their own servers?

So now that I’m done throwing up, protect your identity. Because when it gets hacked on Facebook, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing Facebook Hackers on CNN.

Watching Out For Criminal Hacks

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Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Expert

We use the web to search out tons of information, to shop online and to connect with friends and family. And in the process criminals are trying to whack us over the head and steal from us. And they’ve become very proficient at their craft while most computer users know enough about protecting themselves today as they did 15 years ago. Which equates to not so much.

Back in the day, a person only had to know not to open a file in an attachment from someone they didn’t know. Maybe even not opening one from someone they knew and making a phone call first. Today there are more ways than ever that your PC can be hijacked.

Today you can simply visit a website thinking you are safe and the bad guy was there before you and injected code on the site and now it infects your out-dated browser. That’s a “drive by” and it’s very common today. Here is a list of likely attacks occurring every day.

Fundamentals:

Update your browser. Internet Explorer and Firefox are the most exploited browsers. Whenever there is an update to these browsers take advantage of it.   Keep the default settings and don’t go to the bowels of the web where a virus is most likely to be. Consider the Google Chrome browser as it’s currently less of a target.

Update your operating system. No matter what brand of computer you are on you have to update the critical security patches for your Windows operating system. Microsoft will no longer support Windows XP after 2014, so start thinking about upgrading to Windows 7 (which is pretty sweet). Go to Windows Update. Why anyone would keep XP running unless they had to is a mystery to me. It’s a dog who has been kicked too many times.

Update Adobe Reader and Flash. Adobe PDFs and Flash Player are ubiquitous on almost every PC. Which makes them a prime target for criminals. To update Reader go to Help then Check for Updates. To update Flash go here.

Don’t be suckered into scareware. A popup launches and it looks like a window on your PC. Next thing a scan begins. The scan tells you that a virus has infected your PC. And for $49.95 you can download software that magically appears just in time to save the day. Studies show that organized criminals are earning $10,000.00 a day from scareware. That’s approximately 200 people a day getting nabbed. Some “distributors” have been estimated to make as much as $5 million a year. Just shut down your browser and do a scan with your existing anti-virus. Then update your browser because it’s probably outdated, which is why you saw scareware in the first place.

Beware of social media scams. Numerous Twitter (and Facebook) accounts including those of President Obama, Britney Spears, Fox News and others were taken over and used to make fun of, ridicule, harass or commit fraud. Often these hacks may occur via phish email. Worms infiltrating Twitter requesting to click on links would infect user’s accounts and begin to multiply the message. Then your followers and their follower would get it, causing more grief than anything else.

Invest in social media protection @ Knowem.com

Invest in Intelius identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano identity theft speaker discussing social media identity theft on CNN

2 Million Homes Are Burgled Every Year

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The FBI says a home is burgled every 15 seconds. Police only catch one out of 10 burglars. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, show U.S. households experience about 16 million property crimes annually. Burglaries result in over $4.5 billion in losses annually resulting in over $2000 in losses to the victims. The National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association, determined property crime averages above 75 percent of all crime. And despite 2 million homes being burgled every year the Justice Department says that burglaries have declined over the past 30 years.

One reason is due to as many as 1 million private officers and security guards who work in residential areas patrolling and providing access control at community entrances. But that’s not all.

What have also reduced burglaries are home security alarms. Studies show as many as 25% of all American homes are equipped with a home security system. Additional security measures such as home security cameras are far less expensive and easier to install, wireless alarm systems and window film that makes it difficult to break glass.

Today’s door locks are better than ever too. Certainly a person can buy and install budget locks, but they can be easily picked or compromised with a ‘bump key.” Spending a few bucks more means much better locks. The most important aspect of a good lock is LOCKING it!

However most burglars don’t care if you have an alarm or expensive locks, because they break into the homes that don’t have alarms or they just jiggle the door knob and hope it’s unlocked.

Many homeowners admit that they don’t use their home security systems to the full extent because they are inconvenient or “scary” to use.  When choosing a home security system, be sure to choose something that can be armed and disarmed easily by all family members.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to Home Security Source discussing Home Security on NBC Boston. Disclosures.