As the number of shoppers who visit retail stores increases, so do the incidents of identity theft and fraud. The risks are related to the use of credit cards, checks and identification documents. Experts warn those shoppers who use these personal information-containing instruments to take extra care. Identity thieves are just waiting for the right opportunity to steal your personal information or to commit fraud. The holiday season is the right time for them to heighten their activities because shoppers seem to be more excited than careful.

At least two regions in the United States have reported a very significant increase in identity crimes, most of which are data breaches. It is estimated that information stolen from companies costs more than $150 billion in the national scene. This is according to a report by LifeLock Consumer Education that covered the years from 2005 to 2010. One observer said that this is caused by the technology that is used by criminals, plus human error on the part of consumers.

Here is yet another example of a run of the mill case of identity theft. The identity theft was committed by a “desperate” woman from New Jersey, just to get even with her ex-boyfriend. This is a case of impersonation that has practically succeeded in ruining one person’s image online. The woman managed to create a bogus Facebook page using her ex-boyfriend’s name, photo and some personal information. From there, she posted inflammatory comments, and a judge ruled that she can be prosecuted for identity theft. Now this is another reason to think further about the case’s wider implications for cyber speech.

The woman pretended to be her ex-boyfriend, who was a police narcotics detective. The posts appeared to be made by him, but all of them were “self-destructive”. One of the comments mentioned that he was “high all the time”. Others were about his admission to activities like frequenting prostitutes and escort services, and that he had herpes.

Such cases of impersonation are always done to obtain some kind of benefit for one’s own self or to injure or defraud another. It can be recalled that the issues of online impersonation and cyber bullying came to light in 2006. It was after the suicide of a 13-year-old girl who was targeted online by a fictitious 13-year old boy. After investigation, it came out that the “boy” was actually the mother of another teenage girl.

As the Christmas season draws near, people start doing some early holiday shopping. For retailers, this part of the year is the most lucrative. This also goes the same with identity thieves, who expect to make a maximum profit. It is good to follow some tips to stay away from them and see to it that they do not enjoy the holidays at your expense.

Beware of skimming when paying at the cash register. Be alert when the store clerk takes your credit card and swipes it through a device. You might not suspect anything because you just believe that this device is the credit card reader, however, there is a machine that copies the information from the card’s magnetic strip, giving your information to the thief. Clearly, purchases can then be charged to your card.

As much as possible, use credit cards instead of debit cards because the credit cards have more protection associated with them. When you have multiple credit cards, choose only one to use for all your holiday purchases. It will be easier for you to track your transactions and to prevent any suspicious activity. There is nothing better than using cash for your purchases because it does not carry any of your personal information.

Beijing considered Google’s action as “unacceptable” for blaming China for the hacking attacks that it suffered. This is the second time that Google was attacked; the first one also pointed to China as the origin of the perpetrator. Google said that there was a concerted Chinese campaign to capture the personal email accounts of some senior government officials of the U.S. and Chinese activists. According to the search giant, both the first and the second attacks were traced to have originated in Jinan, China.

In an explanation, Google said that the concerted attack used targeted emails that were sent to hundreds of recipients. The truth is, the emails led to a fake log in page not created by Google, but by some unscrupulous individuals. Because these emails appeared to have been sent by a known sender, the recipients were willing to give their passwords.

A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, in a news briefing, said that blaming the crime on China is improper. He further mentioned that China is also a victim of hacking, which is an international problem. For several times, China announced that it does not condone hacking. It has admitted, though that hacking remains a popular hobby in the country. However, it is not supported by any means by any public agency or entity.

One of the problems that plague the internet today is identity theft. Users are concerned about how they can guard themselves from this risk. Although some technically skillful ones could by themselves find means to do so, many would still depend on experts for information. Simple internet users are always at risk of losing their identity. This results to various problems that could be avoided only if they knew how to defend themselves.

One expert along this field is Darrell West, vice president and director of both Governance Studies and the Center for Technology Innovation in Washington. He has given recommendation to people about how they can guard themselves in the digital world. He has also written materials on subjects about political, policy and legal challenges raised by digital technology.

He has listed down some of the logical ways to preserve online security. The user should practice “choosing non-obvious passwords” and using different passwords for different accounts. One should avoid using his or her partner’s name, date of birth, hometown, and other obvious personal data. Obviously, these data are now uploaded to social networking or other public sites. Data miners could plainly do some tricks and they could take one’s identity.

Some have the false premonition that celebrities and other “big players” are larger than life, and protected as such. Some would think that hackers and criminals would only prey on the average civilian, but this is not true. Celebrities represent credibility, and wealth. If a hacker were to gain access to a famous person’s credit card, you can be sure they would go to town with it, knowing the celebrity is rich. If a hacker simply wanted to get a message out, posing as a good speaker would be a good idea. These are often obviously fake though, and discredited quickly. If a hacker were to gain access to a celebrities e-mail account however, they would have access to the fan list millions long.

This has just recently happened. A Green Party representative Peter Ellis, recently had his e-mail hacked. The criminal got his password, and went on posing as Peter Ellis himself. He then sent out an e-mail requesting money from any of his supporters, saying that he was on a trip to help out his sick daughter, who needed money for an immediate medical procedure. Anyone who knew Ellis knew his daughter was only eight years old and in perfect health.

The e-mail was sent out to many of the people on Ellis’ contact list. It requested a loan of $1500 dollars be sent to a Belleville address. After Peter figured this out, he quickly called HotMail and had them deactivate his account. One of Peter’s friends tried to catch the crook by feigning interest, but no one knows if it led to an arrest.

The average American household has access to at least one Internet-ready computer now. That means that every time your family boots up the computer system, you are potentially exposing your information to the rest of the world. In a matter of seconds, your Internet privacy can be compromised by hackers, identity thieves and other criminals who can use your family’s information for illegal and immoral activities. Protect your family’s personal information by utilizing some of the free and low cost Internet privacy software available today.

Internet Surfing History “Erasers” – Whenever you visit websites, check your email or conduct transactions online, your personal web surfing history is stored in your computer cache. Criminals who can access your hard-drive can get to your sensitive personal information, including the keystrokes you’ve made. Even if you try to delete your web browsing history, clear cookies and temporary files from within your Internet browser, this information is still not fully erased from your computer records. There are several Internet surfing history eraser software applications now available that can clear all remnants of your Internet browsing history.

With recent blog posts about the Virginia Watchdog and PulaskiWatch, it was only a matter of time before someone had their identity stolen due to the negligence of county clerks posting sensitive information. Computerworld reported on a Ohio woman suing the county clerk after her identity was stolen. An image of a speeding ticket, containing her personal information, was posted on the county website.

Computerworld reported that an upset Arkansas man has posted sensitive information on his website, PulaskiWatch. The information was found via public records and consisted of e-mails between nine government officials, including the county clerk. This privacy issue may seem a little familiar as the Virginia Watchdog (which, coincidentally, does not seem to be working) also posted sensitive information on government officials in Virginia.

Betty Ostergren, a privacy advocate that posts Social Security numbers she found on the Internet, has been given the thumbs up by a federal judge in Virginia. Computerworld reports that the state government can not stop her from posting the Social Security numbers on her website. At first glance, this privacy issue should enrage a lot of people. Knowing she has your personal information and is posting it all over the Internet would upset a lot of people; but how did she find this information in the first place? She got the information from the Internet and public records. The privacy advocate did this as a lesson, and to start a campaign to show people just how easy it is to find sensitive information about them.

She won the case and it was ruled that she should not have to remove the Social Security numbers from her site since she legally obtained them from public records. While the memorandum does not set a precedent, it is the first step in truly realizing how much we take our Internet privacy for granted. Ostergren’s website, The Virginia Watchdog, presents privacy issues that arise from the government posting personal information on websites. Over the past few years she has repeatedly shown that Social Security numbers have been posted and little has been done to protect personal information.

I can agree with what she is doing. She did not seek out the information from private sources or use illegal methods, she used the Internet and the public sector. Everything she found was attained from government documents that did not conceal the ultra-sensitive information. With the already astonishing number of identity thefts every year, I don’t see how the government posting such private information can help. How about a permanent marker and two seconds to hide the information? Problem solved… Ms. Ostergren also posts the information of high-profile officials, such as former Gov. Jeb Bush, former U.S. Secretary Colin Powell, and some local Virginia officials. I guess it really strikes a nerve and makes them care when their information is up there, and not just the information of the huddled masses.