Fergie's Tech Blog

A Look Into The Dark Underbelly of Data Breaches

Via The NetworkWorld "Layer 8" Blog.

The process by which large volumes of data are stolen, resold, and ultimately used by criminals to commit fraud, has evolved from the sale of a few pieces of sensitive information, such as credit card numbers and expiration dates, to full blown identity packages containing multiple types of sensitive personal information.

That is but one of the disconcerting details of a Department of Justice-penned report [.pdf] that looks at the rapidly morphing, dark side of stolen personal information set to appear in next month’s issue of the Santa Clara Computer and High Technology Journal.

The article goes on to say the large volumes of stolen data are priced to sell and charges are determined by the degree of difficulty in obtaining the data, according to the paper’s author, DOJ attorney Kimberly Kiefer Peretti. In the first half of 2007, for example, credit card information ranged from $0.50 to $5.00 per card, bank account information ranged from $30.00 to $400.00, and full identity information ranged from $10 to $150.79. Such information is available on illegal Web sites known as carding forums.

posted by Fergie @ 5/30/2008 12:01:00 PM