Are Millennials Putting Themselves at Risk with their Digital Habits?

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By Pam Reiss

According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), the number of reported incidents of cyber fraud continues to increase, reaching to 351,937 in 2018, 16% more than 2017 and a 30% increase from 2014.  Losses from these incidents are growing even faster, reaching more than $2.7 billion last year, an increase of 90% from 2017, and almost 240% more than 2014.  The FTC, which collects data on all sources of fraud, are even more staggering, registering almost 3 million complaints last year alone.

What’s alarming is that no age group is immune.  While there is a correlation between age and amount lost according to FTC data, there is also a reverse correlation between age and frequency of fraud loss.  The median loss increases with age, and Americans 80 and over tend to experience significantly larger losses than any other age group.  But, they are also the least likely to experience loss due to fraud.

In fact, younger Americans under 30 appear to be much more susceptible to loss through fraud than other age groups, falling victim to some sort of fraud three times more often than senior citizens.  This is particularly alarming because it points to younger generations having habits that make them easier targets, which could place them at risk for larger losses as they get older and their savings grow.

A large part of it is the nature of digital natives – Millennials and post-Millennials.  Growing up with the world at their fingertips, they have been immersed in a social environment and are willing to share just about anything.  They have built an resistance to fear of sharing information, and the more “friends” and “followers” and “likes” they have, the more successful they feel, often with little regard for the source of acknowledgement.

That world of social media acceptance has created a false sense of trust, opening the door for criminals, who only need to collect a few pieces of information in order to accomplish their goals.  It’s very easy to set up fake digital personalities to collect personal information or to create entertaining online quizzes to show your IQ, what Star Wars character you would be, or other similar social interactions.

This willingness to share, combined with younger people’s inherently higher level of trust (perhaps we should call it naïveté), makes them easier targets than older generations, which are less likely to trust engagements from people or entities they don’t know.

Whether the result is providing personal information that can lead to fraud, or clicking on malicious links in appear to be legitimate, younger adults can often be more easily manipulated by con artists and cyber criminals.  The good news is there are a number of easy tips that can help keep everyone – young and old – safe.

  • Check senders’ actual email addresses (not just names, they can be falsified)
  • Don’t click on links unless you are sure they are legitimate
  • Don’t open attachments unless you are sure they are intended for you – verify with senders if needed
  • Don’t share personal information with anyone you don’t know, including birthdays and birth cities. Most entities that need this information already have it.  This is a common phone scam tactic
  • If you aren’t sure if a request is legitimate, don’t acknowledge it until you have verified it separately with the organization or friend asking for it
  • Don’t accept friend or follower requests from people you don’t know or who seem out of place
  • Always keep your cyber security software up to date on all devices
  • Monitor your bank and credit card accounts, as well as credit reports
  • Be aware of “free” offers – you can rarely get things for nothing
  • Don’t send money to anyone who isn’t a close friend or family member
  • Be on the lookout for “URGENT” requests for information or money – this is telltale sign of scams
  • Don’t engage in any financial or other sensitive transactions over public or other unsecured WiFi networks – they can easily be hacked and your data intercepted.

Following these simple steps will help keep your identity and finances secure.  It’s inevitable, however, that you will be engaged by a fraudster.  When that happens, be sure to report it.  The more information authorities have, the better then are able to connect scams with their perpetrators and hopefully catch them.

Hopefully, it won’t happen, but if you think your personal or financial information has been compromised, contact The Milford Bank immediately.

 

Identity Theft vs. Identity Fraud: What You Need to Know

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By Tyler Haskell

Identity theft and identity fraud are becoming all too common today, with the economic impact to banks, businesses, and customers reaching well into the billions annually. In 2018, roughly 14.4 million American adults were victims of identity fraud, with losses totaling $14.7 billion. The two terms – identity theft and identity fraud – are closely related, but aren’t the same, despite often being used interchangeably.

Identity Theft
Identity theft takes place when criminals acquire personal data, which is then used for subsequent illegal activities, including identity fraud and the sale of information to others. This information can include any number of PII (Personally Identifiable Information) data, such as social security numbers, credit card numbers, bank accounts, driver’s license numbers, passwords, and more.

There are many ways criminals can steal personal data, from advanced hacking techniques to intricate scams to burglary and dumpster searches. Corporate hacking instances have increased over the past years, with many high-profile breaches being featured in mainstream news, from retail stores to healthcare organizations. The breaches have resulted in millions of customers’ data being stolen. Mobile devices are also a high-value target, simply because of the incredible amount of data stored on them.

Identity Fraud
Identity Fraud happens when criminals use stolen personal data for illegitimate transactions. These may include fraudulent purchases, opening new bank accounts or credit cards, initiating loans, and more.

Identity fraud impacts not only the victims of identity theft, but also the other organizations that become part of the fraudulent activity: merchants, banks, credit card companies, etc. The truth is, everyone is impacted in some way because businesses build the cost of fraud into their pricing structures to help cover their losses.

Protecting Yourself
Recovering from identity fraud is a daunting task that can take 200-300 hours of time and cost $1,000 or more. What’s more, these accounts can appear on credit reports for extended periods, making it difficult for victims to get legitimate credit.

First and foremost, protect your data. Don’t share passwords or account information. Don’t lend your credit cards or IDs to others. Make sure you have high levels of security on your mobile devices and use highly secure passwords on your online accounts – and don’t reuse passwords. Also use two-factor authentication whenever possible.

Be aware of the countless scams being conducted via phone and online. If you even remotely question a request for information or an offer, hang up and call the institution back yourself to verify the request. Legitimate organizations don’t usually ask for sensitive information without you having contacted them first.

Be sure to check your credit report regularly. We can assist our account holders with this by activating Credit Sense on your online and mobile banking app. Credit Sense is a tool that will help you improve your financial well-being. Credit Sense gives you up-to-date personal credit information including credit scores, credit usage, total balances, payment history, credit age and recent credit. You can refresh your credit score as often as you need and get tips on how to improve it. Credit Sense also offers credit monitoring, which gives you protection from fraud with alerts notifying you when something has changed in your credit profile.

While it’s hard to keep your data completely safe, following these simple precautions and staying alert can help you avoid the hassles and financial burden of identity theft and fraud. To help you with best practices for avoiding identity theft, contact us to learn how we are helping protect your identity and funds.