The number of internet-based attacks designed to steal
personal identities has grown dramatically over the past two years,
security firm McAfee has revealed in a report on identity
theft.
Between January 2004 and May 2006 the number of keylogger
programs, which capture personal information such as credit card
details, rose by 250%, according to the report, and the number of
alerts issued by the anti-phishing working group increased by a
factor of 100.
Growth in electronic information theft is contributing to high
levels of identity fraud, which has cost an estimated $3.2bn
(£1.6bn) in the UK over the past three years.
Victims include South African customers of Standard Bank, who
lost several hundred thousand rand after criminals installed
Trojans in cybercafés and on other public computers.
In a recent study in the US, research firm Gartner estimated
that 19% of people who received phishing e-mails –the equivalent of
11 million US internet users – clicked on a link to a fraudulent
website. About 2.4 million reported losing money.
The volume of data-stealing Trojans in circulation on the
internet has grown, following the publication of toolkits which
allow hackers to write their own.
One Russian, nicknamed Corpse, is selling a tookit online for
between $200 and $500. The kit has been used by hackers to create
multiple versions of a sophisticated password-stealing Trojan
called Backdoor-BAC.
Hacking kit threatens e-commerce security
Scope out your ID risks and goals
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