Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

Stealing Credit Card Information from Wi-Fi Networks

Seattle police are investigating a group of criminals who they say have been cruising around town in a black Mercedes stealing credit card data and other information by tapping into wireless networks belonging to area businesses. The group has been at it for about five years, according to an affidavit signed by Detective Chris Hansen, a fraud investigator with the Seattle Police Department. The gang is thought to have stolen more than $750,000 worth of items, mostly from businesses although some from private individuals.

Stealing information from unsecured or from WEP-secured wireless networks is rather easy to do. In the October 30, 2010 edition of this newsletter, I published a Plus Edition article telling how to avoid the problem. In fact, when I am traveling, I always use the VPN that I described to encrypt all of my online connections through wireless and even through wired Internet connections in hotels. Wired connections can be equally risky when you don't know who is sharing the wired connection with you. In hotels, typically all hotel guests can easily tap into the same wired or wireless connection that you are using.

More Security Problems With Facebook

If you are still using Facebook, you need to read the Open Letter to Facebook written by well-known anti-virus firm Sophos. Amongst other things, the letter says:

"Every day, victims report to us numerous incidents of crime and fraud on Facebook. They have been personally affected and are desperate for advice on how to deal with the consequences.

"A frequent refrain from users who contact us is, ‘Why doesn’t Facebook do more to protect us?’"

Was Your Email Address Compromised by Scammers? Avoid the Scams!

A Texas-based marketing company called Epsilon had its database stolen by hackers on March 30. Unfortunately, Epsilon does contract work for Best Buy, Walgreens, Marriott Rewards, TiVo, Citigroup, US Bank, JPMorgan Chase, the Home Shopping Network, and dozens of other companies. If you have ever done business with any of any of these firms, your information undoubtedly was in the Epsilon database and probably was stolen.

The stolen information reportedly was limited to email addresses and/or customer names only, according to Epsilon. I guess we have to take the company's word about that although I do admit to having doubts. In any case, you probably are going to receive more spam mail than normal in the coming months as the spammers use these mailing lists in an attempt to hoodwink you into giving away personal information or purchasing questionable goods.

Update: Genealogy Database Identifies Man Living Under an Assumed Identity

On March 6, 2011, I wrote about Timothy Rodger O'Neil, a man who had been living under a deceased person's identity for at least eight years. O'Neil's new mother-in-law discovered that O'Neil wasn't the man he claimed to be when trying to put together his family tree. When searching on Ancestry.com, she discovered that the man she was seeking died in 1982.

Today, O'Neil was sentenced to 9 months in jail for the felony of unauthorized use of another person's identifying information.

Is AOL Scamming Its Customers?

PC Magazine has an interesting article about an unethical business practice of AOL with many senior citizens in its list of victims. Since I see a LOT of AOL email addresses amongst the subscribers of this newsletter, I thought I would suggest you double-check your AOL bills. Dan Costa writes in a PC Magazine article:

AOL.com, of course, is free. It used to be a pay service, but has been free for years. You can access the AOL.com, read all of its content, and check your aol.com e-mail without paying a dime. If you already pay for an account, however, AOL will continue to bill you. And evidently, that makes AOL a LOT of money.

You can read the full article at: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2376166,00.asp

 

Electronic Pickpockets

The following article has nothing to do with genealogy, but I believe every consumer should be aware of this. I suggest you forward the original article at http://www1.whdh.com/features/articles/specialreport/BO144732/ to anyone you think might be interested.

Are you aware that modern-day thieves can read the numbers of some of the credit cards in your pocket or purse without your knowledge? You do not have to remove the credit cards, and the thieves do not need to see the cards. They certainly do not have to tell you that they are collecting the credit card numbers. All they have to do is walk past you in a crowd.

Take a close look at your credit cards, especially the newer ones. Do they have this radio waves symbol? See the image to the right for one example. The symbol on your credit card might be smaller. The symbol might also be on the reverse, as shown in this second picture. Not all vulnerable credit cards have that symbol, however.

Don't Fall For Fake Anti-Virus Scams

I used to have a job installing and fixing computers and networks. Sadly, I saw a number of my customers fall for this scam. A pop-up window appears on your computer, advising you that you have a virus and that it can be fixed by downloading a company's virus removal program that costs $30 or $40. Many people believe all this is true and they fall for it. They purchase the product.

The problem is that it is all a scam. Your computer probably never had a virus. The pop-up is lying to you. Even worse, when you pay for the program, download it, and install it, these scams often install new viruses onto your hard drive! The new viruses will scan your hard drive, looking for passwords, bank account information, and more, then will send that information to the scammers' servers.

How Much Are You Worth on the Black Market?

Ever wondered how much your online identity is worth to a cybercriminal? A new tool from Symantec Corp. will perform the calculation for you.

The Norton Online Risk Calculator at http://everyclickmatters.com/preloader.html?redirect=/victim/assessment-tool.html calculates your net worth on the black market by asking a few questions about your personal Internet use. The site then estimates how much a criminal will pay to obtain your personal information.

Fake iTunes Bill Can Drain Your Bank Account

I received one of these email messages a few days ago. Luckily, Gmail placed it in my spam folder so I didn't see it until today when I went looking for it. You have to hand it to these scam artists: they certainly are clever at devising methods of stealing your money.

I wrote a couple of days ago at http://goo.gl/nvl9 about a "trojan" email message that steals your user IDs and passwords to your online banking account. This new scam is a different Trojan message with a very clever delivery method.

Fake LinkedIn Spam Can Steal Your Bank Passwords

Beware of requests claiming to be from social networking sites! According to Cisco Security:

Starting this morning, Monday 9/27, at 10am GMT, cyber criminals sent spam email messages targeting the LinkedIn social media community.

Victims are emailed an alert link with a fictitious social media contact request. These messages accounted for as much as 24% of all spam sent within a 15-minute interval. Clicking the link, victims are taken to a web page that says "PLEASE WAITING.... 4 SECONDS" and redirects them to Google. During those four seconds, the victim's PC is infected with the ZeuS data theft malware by a drive-by download. ZeuS embeds itself in the victim's web browser and captures personal information, such as online banking credentials, and is widely used by criminals to pilfer commercial bank accounts.

The Dot-Cons

I have recently published articles about online scams and now there is a YouTube video of a very similar in-person scam. In fact, it is an advertisement for Internet Explorer 8, but it also shows just how gullible many of us are. There is a lesson here for all of us.

You can watch the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcdEojQrIpQ or else click on the image below:

Another Scam: I Was Robbed!

If you receive an email message like the one shown below, ignore it. It is a scam. Tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of these messages are being sent from scam artists. Nobody was robbed and nobody is sitting without funds (and, if they were, the U.S. Embassy and Travelers' Aid and their credit card companies would help).

Here is one the many such messages I have received in recent days, complete with all typo errors intact:

Two More Census Workers Blow the Whistle

John Crudele has an article in the New York Post about our beloved Census Bureau. He writes:

You know the old saying: "Everyone loves a charade." Well, it seems that the Census Bureau may be playing games.

Last week, one of the millions of workers hired by Census 2010 to parade around the country counting Americans blew the whistle on some statistical tricks.

Here's a Mystery: What Does the Historical Research Center have in Common with Ginsu Knives?

The Historical Research Center has ads plastered all over the Internet and on late-night television, claiming to sell you the history of your family name. The company even claims to provide your "family coat of arms" on wall plaques, coffee cups, and other such mementoes. There's only one problem: it's all bogus.

Chris Rodda did some research into the Historical Research Center and found some interesting facts. For one, there is no such thing as a family coat of arms. (Any experienced genealogist could have told you that.)

Next, Historical Research Center spokesperson Michael Walshe is featured in most of the advertisements. And who is Michael Walshe? He claims to be the man who introduced you to the Ginsu knife back in 1978.

Online Shopping - Keep Your Financial Information Safe

I am always amused when someone says, "I am afraid to use credit cards online. May I send you a check?"

In effect, that person is saying, "I am afraid to use the safe method. May I use the more dangerous method of sending money?"

Being able to use your credit card online or to use services like PayPal makes purchasing items online very easy. Online shopping with credit cards is also safe and secure. Online shopping is often more convenient than shopping in person or by mail order or telephone. Whether you are buying from an online store, ordering online from a delivery service, or bidding at online auctions, you do need to be careful about your personal and financial details.

Zeus Botnet is Back in Full Force

Keeping up with Windows viruses, Trojan horse programs, spyware, and other problems can be scary at best. The best defense is to keep a good anti-virus program installed, and always make sure it is up to date with the latest updates. Also, you should avoid web browsers with known problems.

I have repaired many computers that were infected with various "malware" problems. (Malware is an acronym for "malevolent software”). Many of the computers I fixed had anti-virus programs installed, but those programs had not been updated recently. An out-of-date program is as useless as no protection at all: the computer is not protected against the latest attacks. And new attacks appear every week.

Facebook Retroactively Makes More User Data Public

I have written often about online security issues. Here's one more:

Facebook has decided to retroactively move more information into the public, indexable part of profiles. The new profile parts made public are: a list of things users have become 'fans' of (now renamed to 'likes'), their education and work histories, and what they list under 'interests.' Apparently there is neither any opt-out nor even notice to users, despite the fact that some of this information was entered by users at a time when Facebook's privacy policy explicitly promised that it wouldn't be part of the public profile."

In fact, Facebook recently removed its users' ability to control who can see their own interests and personal information.

Scam Watch: Your Family Name

Beware of the ads that recently have appeared on late-night television and on the web. These ads insinuate that they can trace your name back in time to its origins. Actually, the ads are carefully worded to always say "the origins of your name," not the "origins of your ancestors."

The ads state, "Your ancestors left you a precious legacy: your family name." The same ads also claim to offer an "extremely detailed family history" and "a scroll of your family name and origin and meaning." The Internet ad also offers "2 specially researched reports on why your ancestors got their family name and why there is a Coat of Arms listed under your family name."

Of course, the advertisements neglect to mention there is no such thing as a "family coat of arms" (except in Japan and a few rare exceptions in the Netherlands) and names came from many places. 

Another Rogue Program: Security Essentials 2010

Security Essentials from Microsoft is a great anti-virus and anti-most-everything-else program. It detects and removes most Windows viruses, trojan horse programs, root kit viruses, and most other malware. 

NOTE: Malware is an abbreviation for "malevolent software." Malware has many varieties, but all have the same purpose: to do damage to your computer and then (usually) ask you for money to fix it. This is a high tech version of kidnapping. It is illegal, but most malware creators never get caught.

I wrote about the free Security Essentials from Microsoft in the October 1, 2009 newsletter. It is free and does a good job. However, a new malevolent product is floating around with a similar name: Security Essentials 2010. Note the "2010" tacked onto the end of the name. The product from Microsoft has no date; it is simply called Security Essentials. The bad program written by unknown scam artists adds the date on the end: Security Essentials 2010.

Beware the "Census Form" You Receive

As most U.S. genealogists already know, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts a census every ten years. The 2010 census will be conducted by mail over the next few weeks. However, be cautious when you receive an envelope that is marked, "Do Not Destroy, Official Document" and also states "2010 Congressional District Census," the letter uses a capital "C," the same as the Census Bureau.

It wasn't sent by the Census Bureau, and it isn't official. It is a solicitation for you to send money to a political party.