1. The next time you order checks, have only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name. Your bank will know.

2. Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead put “PHOTO ID REQUIRED”.

3. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the “For” line. Instead, just put the last four numbers.

4. Don’t list any telephone number. You can always write it on the check at the time of the transaction. If you have a PO Box, use that instead of your home address or your work address.

5. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Store in a secure place and refresh it when you change cards.

Please read this an other tips at:
Security Awareness Tip

Below is an excellent article from Fox News about cyberscams during the holiday season.

Getting a bargain on Cyber Monday seems compelling. But with online shopping comes the risk of cyberscams.

According to Consumer Reports, cybercriminals have bilked $8 billion from consumers in the past two years. And as Americans open their wallets and their browsers for deals this week, scams and cheats are sure to increase.

To keep you safe as you shop, security company McAfee has broken down the 12 scams of Christmas, warning of the most common swindles crooks will use to try to sneak your wallet, your identity or access to your bank account. “These thieves follow seasonal trends and create holiday-related Web sites, scams and other convincing e-mails that can trick even the most cautious users,” warns Jeff Green, senior vice president of McAfee Labs.

Don’t let them get away with it! Never click links in e-mails, which can easily redirect you to false or misleading Websites. If you create a new account to buy, say, a new sweater from J Crew, use a unique password with letters and symbols, rather than using the same password for all of your log-ins.

And of course, be sure to use security software from a respected company. PCMag.com recently rounded up the 2010 versions of software suites from the big names in security: McAfee, Norton, Kaspersky, AVG, and more. Most packages run $50 to $80—a small price to pay for peace of mind as you shop.

Scam I: Charity Phishing

During the holiday season, hackers take advantage of citizens’ generosity by sending e-mails that appear to be from legitimate charitable organizations. In reality, they are fake Web sites designed to steal donations, credit card information and the identities of donors.

Scam II: Fake Invoices from Delivery Services

During the holidays, cybercriminals often send fake invoices and delivery notifications appearing to be from Federal Express, UPS or the U.S. Customs Service. They e-mail consumers asking for credit card details or require users to open an online invoice to receive a package. Once completed, the person’s information is stolen or malware is automatically installed on their computer.

Scam III: Social Networking Friend Requests

Cybercriminals take advantage of this time of the year by sending authentic-looking “friend request” e-mails from social networking sites. Clicking on links in these e-mails can automatically install malware on your computer or steal your personal information.

Scam IV: Holiday E-Cards

Cyber thieves cash in on consumers who send holiday e-cards in an effort to be environmentally conscious. Last holiday season saw phony Hallmark e-cards and McDonald’s and Coca-Cola holiday promotions. Holiday-themed PowerPoint attachments are also popular among cybercriminals.

Scam V: Holiday Jewelry

McAfee Labs recently uncovered a new holiday campaign that leads shoppers to malware-ridden sites claiming to offer discounted luxury gifts from Cartier, Gucci, and Tag Heuer. Cybercriminals even use fraudulent Better Business Bureau logos to trick shoppers into buying products they never receive.

Scam VI: Online Identity Theft

As bargain hunters surf for deals using free wireless networks at the local cafe, hackers can spy on their activity and steal their personal information.

Scam VII: Phony Websites

During the holidays, hackers create Websites for people searching for holiday-related wallpaper, Christmas carol lyrics or festive screensavers. Downloading holiday-themed files from these sites may infect one’s computer with spyware, adware or other malware.

Scam VIII: Job-Related E-mail Rip-offs

Scammers are preying on desperate job-seekers, with the promise of high-paying jobs and work-from-home moneymaking opportunities. Once interested persons submit their information and pay a set-up fee, hackers steal their money instead of following through on the promised employment opportunity.

Scam IX: Auction Site Fraud

Scammers often lurk on auction sites during the holiday season. Buyers should beware of auction deals that appear too good to be true, because often these purchases never reach their new owner.

Scam X: Password Robbery

Password theft is rampant during the holidays. Thieves use low-cost tools to uncover a person’s password and send out malware to record keystrokes, called keyloggers. Once criminals have access to one or more passwords, they gain vast access to consumers’ bank and credit card details and clean out accounts within minutes. They also commonly send out spam from a user’s account to their contacts.

Scam XI: E-Mail Banking

Cybercriminals more actively trick consumers into divulging their bank details during the holidays, by sending official-looking e-mails from financial institutions. They ask users to confirm their account information, including a user name and password, with a warning that their account will become invalid if they do not comply. They often sell this information through underground online black markets.

Scam XII: Ransomware Boondoggles

Hackers gain control of people’s computers through these holiday scams. They then act as virtual kidnappers to hijack computer files and encrypt them, making them unreadable and inaccessible. The scammer holds the user’s files ransom by demanding payment in exchange for getting them back.

Shopping on Cyber Monday? Beware the 12 Scams of Xmas

It is my opinion that in general people are becoming more aware of Internet threats and identity theft. Most of my associates would never have considered downloading and running something called checkmeout.exe, and I think that this cautious attitude is becoming more prevalent. Of course, this takes away a prime attack vector from hackers trying to build networks of botnets – so they have to be more creative.

Today I read an article talking about hackers targeting Neopets users. The idea is that they offer a rare item for virtually nothing (it’s not free – that might raise too much suspicion). The unsuspecting user downloads this program that allows them to create whatever “paintbrush” they want and *boom* the computer is owned by the hacker. Read the whole article here:

Hackers Target Neopets Users

What is particularly insidious is that the Neopets demographic is children. As adults have become more wary the bad guys are targeting naive and trusting children. Of course, the black hats don’t care how the computer is compromised – it has your data on it and they’ll use whatever they can to get to it.

So, how do you prevent you and your family from being victimized? First, educate your kids. There are some good resources online that I will be highlighting in future posts that teach about safe surfing. Secondly, institute some ground rules for your computer. At my home the kids know they are never under any circumstances to click a button labeled: yes, save, download, etc. If they are confronted with such a choice they have to get me or their mother to come and finish. This prevents them from being suckered by things that smell fishy or are shareware trash may toast the pc. Once I instituted this, the kids were actually pretty compliant. Even my tech-savvy 13yo still calls me into the room when installing software and has me complete it. We always take the opportunity to talk about what it is installing and what it could do so that he can make educated judgments later when I give him more autonomy (and he has his own computer on the line).

My advice is to institute a similar policy in your home.

Ron Shulkin of Examiner.com has written an excellent article about how hackers will use information you post about yourself on social networks to steal your identity.

Here are a few highlights:

So the first thing I’ll do to steal your identity is find out everything I can about you. I can take a quiz, as apparently 34 million others did and with almost 200,000 fans, for “How Well Do You Know Me”? I’ll find out your birth date, where you were born, the names of your parents, your spouse, and your children. And I’ll find out their birthdates. I’ll find out your hobbies and your interests. I’ll see who all your friends are.

I’ll read “25 things you didn’t know about me”. I’ll know what sports you like, what your middle name is. I’ll know what your favorite stores are. I’ll figure out where you live by seeing where you shop. Your grammar school and your high school will be listed. It won’t be long until I find out the name of your first pet. Oh look, you used to have a space between your two front teeth!

Even without all this data I could probably figure out what your passwords are. Most people use the same password for every web site. Here’s the top ten according to PC Magazine:
1. password
2. 123456
3. qwerty
4. abc123
5. letmein
6. monkey
7. myspace1
8. password1
9. link182
10. (your first name)

The full article can be found here:

How I’m going to use social networking to steal your identity!