According to German Reports, Identity Theft is the Greatest Risk Consumers Face
According to German Reports, Identity Theft is the Greatest Risk Consumers Face
The German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) has released a report titled “The State of IT Security in Germany in 2023,” which identifies identity theft as the foremost concern for consumers.
Despite the fact that you can take every precaution to safeguard your devices and online privacy, what happens if a breach occurs at an organization in which you have placed your trust and in which you have access to sensitive data?
The report states:
| “For consumers, the issue of data leaks was prominent in the reporting period (2023). In many cases, these were related to ransomware attacks, in which cybercriminals exfiltrated large amounts of data from organizations in order to later threaten to publish it unless a ransom or hush money was paid.” |
Information stealers pose a threat in addition to data breaches by enabling cybercriminals to acquire a variety of personal data, including financial and login credentials for online services. Additionally, website cookies and biometric information that could be utilized to defraud the victim may be among the pilfered data.
Cybercriminals are also improving their utilization of this information. As an illustration, the report highlights how cybercriminals offered interested parties a browser plug-in on a prominent underground marketplace for identity data. This plug-in facilitated the direct importation of compromised credentials into the web browser, enabling the perpetrators to assume the digital identity of the victim with a few simple clicks.
We have previously discussed the risks associated with data brokers who amass vast quantities of personally identifiable information through trading and purchasing. Presently, the widespread accessibility of Artificial Intelligence tools significantly streamlines the process of correlating these data sets and constructing a comprehensive profile of each individual impacted.
Evidently, once victim information becomes accessible to cybercriminals, it is seldom the victim’s problem. Many times, the extent to which they could have prevented the situation is minimal. Certain services are no longer accessible offline, leaving us with no alternative but to entrust our information to an organization.
Therefore, all that is possible is to ensure that we are ready to respond in the event of a data breach and to exercise caution regarding the information we divulge, as well as the extent to which others may discover us.
Strategies for Handling a Data Breach
The prominent strategies for handling a data breach or identity theft are mentioned below:
| Check the vendor’s advice | Due to the fact that each breach is unique, verify the nature of the breach with the vendor and adhere to any specific recommendations they may have. |
| Change your password | You can render criminals unable to decipher a compromised password by altering it. Select a robust password that remains unshared across all accounts. Alternatively, have a password manager generate one on your behalf. |
| Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) | Utilize a FIDO2-compliant phone, laptop, or hardware key as your second factor whenever possible. Similar to passwords, certain types of two-factor authentication (2FA) are susceptible to phishing. 2FA using a FIDO2 device is impervious to phishing. |
| Watch out for fake vendors | You may be contacted by the criminals while posing as the vendor. Ensure that the vendor is not contacting victims by examining their website; if so, verify any contacts through an additional channel of communication. |
| Take your time | Phishing attempts frequently employ motifs that demand immediate attention, such as failed deliveries, account suspensions, and security alerts, and assume the identities of well-known individuals or organizations. |
| Set up identity monitoring | Identity monitoring notifies you and assists you in recovering your personal information if it is discovered to be traded unlawfully online. |
Get Your IoTs Scanned
Are you curious enough to know about the status of your IoT risk factor related to open vulnerabilities? You may seek Craw Security’s world-class VAPT Solutions by just giving us a chance to serve you better. Moreover, if you are unaware of your own digital identity theft exposure to the malicious threat actors. You may easily get it checked through our highly credible penetration testing experts.
You are just required to give us a call at our hotline mobile number +91-9513805401 and ask for your related queries.
About The Author:
Yogesh Naager is a content marketer who specializes in the cybersecurity and B2B space. Besides writing for the News4Hackers blog, he’s also written for brands including CollegeDunia, Utsav Fashion, and NASSCOM. Naager entered the field of content in an unusual way. He began his career as an insurance sales executive, where he developed an interest in simplifying difficult concepts. He also combines this interest with a love of narrative, which makes him a good writer in the cybersecurity field. In the bottom line, he frequently writes for Craw Security.
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