With the advancement in technology has opened the door to new modern cyber threats. One such threat is identity theft which has become a serious concern for organizations and businesses. For strengthening security posture there is need to understand the relevance of identity theft in cybersecurity. It occurs when attackers use someone’s personal or financial details to commit fraud, which can lead to monetary losses, damage to reputation, and even legal trouble.
As online transactions and data breaches are increasing, both businesses and people face a higher chance of having their identities misused. This makes it necessary to implement strong security measures to effectively combat these modern cyber threats. Organizations need to train their employees on cyberattack simulation and provide cybersecurity awareness training to enhance threat identification and mitigating capabilities.
Identity Theft in cybersecurity involves the unauthorized use of personal details to commit fraud or other crimes. This theft is conducted by gathering personal details and used for impersonating a legitimate person to conduct financial frauds and data breaches. Attackers use tactics like phishing, social engineering and malware to steal confidential details.
Cybercriminals aim to steal necessary details of the victim and impersonate them to commit fraudulent activities. Unfortunately, people get to know that they are victims of identity theft when they open bank accounts, apply for loans, apply for jobs, and request a credit card.
Attackers use the victim’s financial information to access accounts or open new ones.
This type of theft is used by hackers to steal identities through online platforms for cyber fraud.
Cybercriminals use someone else’s details to obtain a job, work legally, or evade taxes.
Fraudsters use someone’s health information to obtain medical services.
This theft involves combining real and fake information to create a new identity.
Attackers steal social security numbers to apply for benefits, loans, or government assistance in the victim’s name.
Attackers use various tactics to steal the victim’s personal and financial details. Following are the steps mentioned below which describe the working of identity theft.
Step-1 Data Theft
Attackers use phishing, social engineering, and malware attacks to steal personal details.
Step-2 Account Compromise
The use of weak and common passwords can lead to account compromises. Cybercriminals also use stolen credentials from data breaches or brute-force attacks to access online accounts.
Step-3 Identity Impersonation
Hackers can create fake IDs or synthetic identities using stolen details and impersonate them as legitimate entities.
Step-4 Fraudulent Transactions
Cybercriminals might be using the victim’s details to apply for loans, or credit cards, or to claim benefits.
Step-5 Covering Tracks
To stay hidden, attackers use proxies and VPNs. They also can reroute communication if needed!
Step-6 Impacting Victim
Due to identity theft, victims need to face financial losses and legal consequences.
MOVEit Data Breach (2023)
Incident: Attackers exploited a vulnerability in MOVEit Transfer, which is a file transfer software. The attack was intended to steal personal and financial details from various organizations.
Impact: This data breach affected thousands of organizations globally. Comprise of Personal details which include social security numbers, financial data, and medical records.
Key Takeaways: This incident highlighted the importance of implementing strong data protection and updating systems to fix vulnerabilities.
Source: NCSC
To commit cyberfraud, attackers might impersonate a legitimate entity and request to share details such as bank account numbers and social security numbers. Always verify sources and avoid sharing your personal details.
Don’t wait for monthly statements if you find any suspicious activities in your account. Check online or phone banking apps to get further details.
Always use unique and strong passwords, also add MFA to your account for an extra layer of security against unauthorized access. Don’t use common passwords as it can be easily guessed by someone.
Organizations need to train employees on simulations of different cyberattacks to enhance their threat identification and mitigation capabilities. By providing proper security awareness training organizations can enhance their weakest link, that is employees and convert them to strongest defenses.
For protecting data transmission, there is a need for using VPNs and secured Wi-Fi networks to protect confidential data and unauthorized access to organization’s IT infrastructure.
There is a need to avoid clicking on suspicious emails from unknown sources that might contain suspicious links or attachments which can infect your devices. To avoid such issues organizations can use Threatcop’s TDMARC which is a complete email security solution and helps to protect organization’s email workflow.
To fix vulnerabilities and issues in your systems, always update the devices as it provides patches to the issues in the system and protects from modern cyberthreats. Also use antivirus and firewalls to avoid malicious software getting installed on your devices without your permission.
Advise your employees to limit personal details on social media as these details can be used by cybercriminals to conduct cyberfraud. Always verify the sources while browsing on various social media platforms to avoid being a victim of scams.
Social security numbers should be stored securely and must be avoided to be shared as identifiers. Protecting social security numbers is essential as it could reveal your personal details which can be used for conducting cyberfraud.
Always shred confidential documents before disposal to avoid identity theft as it can be used for knowing sensitive company details and can be used by others to harm anyone.
Identity theft in cybersecurity is a broader perspective when we talk about preventing confidential data. Digital data can neither be erased nor permanently vanished. To stop attackers from manipulating personal details, there is a need to adopt strong defense mechanisms and regular monitoring to reduce attempts of phishing and social engineering attacks. Using preventive measures such as strong passwords with MFA, monitoring financial details, and staying cautious while sharing personal details. People need to be aware of the protection strategies and need to be cautious and self-aware to avoid being victims of identity theft.
Ans: In identity theft, attackers use the victim’s data without permission to commit fraud or crimes.
Ans: Use of MFA, strong passwords, monitoring financial statements and staying cautious while sharing confidential details are the ways to protect from identity theft.
Ans: Immediately report the theft to the relevant authority and update account credentials to secure your account.
Ans: Victims need to face financial loss, legal consequences, data breaches, and attacker’s misuse victim’s identity for illegal and fraudulent activities.
Technical Content Writer at Threatcop
Milind Udbhav is a cybersecurity researcher and technology enthusiast. As a Technical Content Writer at Threatcop, he uses his research experience to create informative content which helps audience to understand core concepts easily.
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