Thinking about global crime fighters may conjure images of Batman, Superman, or Spiderman.

But one UI Ph.D. student is putting a new face on crushing bad guys across the world.

Peter Likarish, a fourth-year graduate student in the computer-science department, is working to develop a Firefox plug-in that would tell people when they are entering possible phishing sites, which take users’ personal information illegally.

“This is affecting more and more people,” he said.

Identity theft is becoming an increasing problem, especially with the rise of digital technology, said Emory Lundberg, the senior security analyst for the UI Information Technology Services.

“It’s a global problem,” he said.

And the problem is prevalent locally, too.

Iowa City has seen an increasing number of identity-theft reports, said Iowa City police Sgt. Mike Lord, and officers respond to several cases of varying severity each day.

Traditionally, people have stolen identities in paper form, such as mailing envelopes or disposed checks. But cases involving electronics are growing.

Likarish said he hopes his program will fill loopholes left by Internet browsers. The browsers, such as Internet Explorer or Firefox, create blacklists of websites known for phishing. If a user visits one of these sites, he or she receives an alert that contains suspicious information.

But Internet surfers are still vulnerable to new phishing sites that have yet to be blacklisted by browsers, a problem Likarish is trying to solve.

Once finished, users will be able to download the new technology installed as a toolbar. The program will analyze each site’s user visits and break down the content to determine the likelihood of it being a phishing site.

“This is a way to complement the black list technology,” Likarish said.

He hopes his program can be released on a large-scale by January 2010.

A universitywide e-mail sent on Sept. 28 helped inform students and employees about the dangers of phishing, but Lundberg said keeping everyone safe online is difficult.

“Some phishing attacks are very specific and targeted,” he said. “You can never stop all attempts by an automatic filter.”

Greg Bal, the supervising attorney for Student Legal Services, said three or four students come to him each year with identity-theft concerns.

And though it is difficult to describe a “typical” case of identity theft, he said, his office makes sure students know who to communicate with to solve the problem efficiently. This may mean referring students to their bank or local law enforcement agency.

Likarish said even the most tech-savvy people can find themselves victims to online identity theft.

“It’s not just people who are computer illiterate,” he said. “They also attack the most successful computer users.”

Article form: http://www.dailyiowan.com/2009/10/15/Metro/13653.html

As National Identity Fraud Prevention Week moves towards its conclusion, new claims have been made on alternative methods of identity theft.

Dave Birch, director of Consult Hyperion, wrote in a blog post on the digital identity forum that real identity theft involves malicious account takeover of social networking profiles.

Birch said: “OK, so we all know that a virtual identity can be worth something. That also makes it worth stealing, and it's much easier for people to steal your virtual identity than your physical identity.

“Compared to someone stealing a credit card, this is a much worse crime, isn't it? While Bebo, MySpace and Facebook users are undoubtedly becoming better educated about identity, privacy, security and so forth, the lack of any real (i.e., not password-based) security for these critical virtual identities make them an obvious focus for criminals.”

Birch claimed that the ‘419' crowd have made Facebook their new frontier as they taking over Facebook identities and then using them to perpetrate inventive frauds.

Birch said: “A current favourite is the ‘friend in distress'. If you got a message, via Facebook, from a good friend telling you that they are in Paris and have been mugged and desperately need money quickly and could you wire them $500 immediately, what would you do? Plenty of people send the cash, not suspecting that their friend's identity has been stolen.

“It's easy to do this: you just need the password. And those are easy to obtain: just send out a spam ‘this is Facebook, we're just checking our security systems, please log in' message. And when you do find out you've been scammed, where do you go?”

Birch claimed that this is real identity theft and believed that this has much more personal impact on the victims than the theft of the money. If someone takes over your Facebook page or your LinkedIn page they really have stolen your virtual identity as you are deprived of the use of that identity, and if you can persuade Facebook to issue you with a new password, how will your friends begin to trust that identity again?

Birch said: “If you can't get control and regain trust, that means you have to abandon that identity and start all over again, building an entirely new online footprint. This is much more important, looking forward, than what we currently see as the ‘identity theft' problem, which as far as I can see from most reporting is about the tangible subset of identity theft concerned with payment cards.”

Article from: http://www.scmagazineuk.com/Theft-of-a-digital-identity-can-be-as-damaging-as-personal-fraud/article/152326/

Justin Feffer, a senior investigator at the Los Angeles County district attorney's office, drove to a suspect's house last December for a search relating to an identity-theft case. First, he did what cops normally do: took down the license number on the truck in the driveway, noted that surveillance cameras hung from the eaves and the windows were covered in paper.

Then, he did something unusual for a local cop: He pulled out his iPhone and checked for any unencrypted wireless access points nearby. The iPhone check, says Mr. Feffer, helped avoid the predicament that befell two other law-enforcement agencies that raided the wrong house on successive days, because the real suspect in a child pornography case had been using an innocent person's unprotected wireless Internet connection. Mr. Feffer didn't find any wireless loopholes that could be exploited.

As a member of the Los Angeles district attorney's high-technology crimes unit, Mr. Feffer is part of a cadre of 21st century crime fighters who sift through digital evidence on computers, cellphones and other electronic devices. While the Internet has vastly expanded the reach of criminals, the digital fingerprints that these activities leave can be a powerful investigative tool -- for those with the knowledge and equipment to use it.

These days, "practically every crime, from drug dealing to murder, involves digital evidence," says Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley, whose office handles state felony prosecutions in the nation's most populous county. To grapple with what Mr. Cooley calls this "tsunami of digital evidence," the number of high-tech investigators and prosecutors has expanded in recent years to 20 people from two.

Most local law enforcement agencies, however, aren't so lucky. Federal agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, have long had substantial high-tech operations. But many of the thousands of local and state law-enforcement agencies -- which handle about 90% of the nation's felony cases -- have been scrambling to gear up for 21st century crime fighting, say people familiar with the issue.

"Police chiefs and sheriffs have realized it is smart to have a cyber presence in their department," but many "don't have the budget to support" the specialized equipment and training needed, says Robert Hopper of the National White Collar Crime Center, a Glen Allen, Va., nonprofit that provides training to law enforcement.

There are examples of local success in cyber crime fighting. Computer investigators at the Manhattan district attorney's office helped win convictions of five individuals who stole victims' personal information from online databases to commit identity theft, says Antonia Merzon, head of the office's identity theft unit.

Investigators from the Alabama's state computer forensics laboratory recovered pictures from a computer memory card and digital camera of Pierre Falgout III showing him abusing young children, says Barry Matson, chief prosecutor of the state forensics labs. Ultimately, he pleaded guilty and last year a federal judge sentenced him to 960 years in prison.

At the Los Angeles district attorney's high-tech unit, a number of the investigators started as street cops with a personal interest in computers. "I aspired to be a nerd," jokes James Hildreth, a former deputy sheriff who is now supervising investigator of the unit, which has its own forensics lab -- a windowless downtown Los Angeles office filled with computers that extract and analyze data from other electronic devices.

In 2005, Mr. Hildreth analyzed the computer of a local photographer named John Rutter, who was being prosecuted by the district attorney for allegedly trying to extract over $3 million from actress Cameron Diaz for some risqué photos he took of the actress early in her career.

A key document was a release form Ms. Diaz had supposedly signed giving Mr. Rutter use of the photos. Going through the defendant's computer, Mr. Hildreth discovered copies of autographed photos of Ms. Diaz that had been taken off the Internet as well as a file where those signatures had been transferred. One of those signatures proved to be a match of the one on the supposed release form, says Mr. Hildreth.

"Once we proved the release was a forgery, his whole defense pretty much fell apart," says David Walgren, prosecutor on the case.

Mr. Rutter was convicted of attempted grand theft, forgery and perjury and sentenced to over three years in prison. His attorney, Mark Werksman, says the district attorney's investigation was "very skillful" and "relied heavily" on its high-tech resources.

The high-tech unit has also helped track down a man who was using a public computer at the Beverly Hills library to send out threats, including blowing up a high school basketball game. They also tracked two men who allegedly stole over three dozen $3,500 police radios. The Beverly Hills man was convicted of unlawful communications with an electronic device and given probation. The men in the radio case were charged with conspiracy to commit theft and await trial.

The high-tech unit also responds to cyber-related emergencies. Last year, executives at a major movie studio locally received an e-mail from what appeared to be the general counsel concerning a secret business project, says Mr. Feffer. When executives opened an e-mail attachment, it introduced "malware" into their computers, which allowed the intruder wide access into computer files.

While the studio's computer system had anti-virus protection, such programs generally pick up "only about 60% of the malware in existence," says Mr. Feffer, who helped debug the computer system and trace the attack to an overseas source. Since this was beyond their jurisdiction, Mr. Feffer says, the investigation was turned over to "other agencies," which he declines to name. No charges have been filed in the case, he adds.

Last year's investigation of identity theft, which involved stealing online tax returns, highlighted the vulnerability of many home computers. Hundreds of victims had their tax returns and other personal information filched from their computers because they had installed file-sharing software, says Mr. Feffer. Such software, which many people use to share music through peer-to-peer networks, can leave all the files on a person's computer open to the Internet if proper precautions aren't taken, he says. Stealing the files was as simple as typing in the search words "tax returns" and harvesting what came up from the network.

Tipped by an informant who tracks illegal online file sharing, district attorney investigators used the suspect computer's own Internet footprints to find the house where it was located. There, under a bed, they found a thumb-sized computer device which yielded copies of the stolen tax returns. The victims' personal information had been used to open bogus credit card accounts, according to court filings in the criminal case.

Earlier this year, Jill Sellers, 29, pleaded guilty to the identity theft and was sentenced to over two years in prison. Her attorney declined to comment.

If file sharing is a risk to the innocent, it can also be a snare for the guilty. Under a federally funded program, local law enforcement now has the ability to search file-sharing networks on a real-time basis for files containing pornographic images of children. During a recent demonstration by Mr. Feffer, dots popped up all over a map of Los Angeles County on his computer screen.

"Each of those is one or more computers currently sharing child porno files," he said. The district attorney's office began using this search software in January and has filed nine criminal cases. Several have already resulted in convictions.

Article from: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125487044221969127.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

You might get asked for ID when you buy alcohol, but getting ID'd at the doctor's office?! If it hasn't happened to you yet, it could at your next visit.

It's not where you'd expect to be asked for an ID, but your next visit hospital or doctor's office could come with a strange request.

This is part of a federal law aimed at cutting down on identity theft and insurance fraud. Amy Marquart of Columbia St. Mary's says, "We haven't had a lot of this, but when we seen situations that we've needed to look into it has been where people have been using someone else's name, and a lot of times they're using someone else's name to try and secure insurance coverage."

It's known as the Red Flags Rule, and it requires health care providers to implement identity theft prevention programs. At Columbia St. Mary's, signs are posted to alert patients. They've decided to ask everyone for photo ID, but if patients can't provide one they won' be turned away in an emergency. Marquart said, "We do always provide services in the emergency department, because under a different law we're required to do that so patients who present to the emergency department will be asked for identification, but if they can't produce it they'll be treated anyway."

Enforcement of the red flags rule starts November first, but Columbia St. Mary's has been doing this since August. They say patients have been pretty positive about it.

The red flags rule is through the Federal Trade Commission, it doesn't require health care providers to ask for ID. It also doesn't require them to have an effective identity theft program. We checked with a couple other providers, like Aurora, and they are not asking for ID's.

Article from: http://www.fox6now.com/news/witi-091006-doctor-id,0,6510760.story

Millions of consumers in the United States have already had their personal information compromised in data breaches. That includes the loss or theft of such sensitive data as credit card and debit card numbers and expiration dates, Social Security numbers and health records. Although word of such massive breaches can leave you feeling helpless, there are many things you can do to protect yourself and prepare for the worst.

Data breaches remain a major threat. The largest-ever data breach took place last year at payment processor Heartland Payment Systems , with information on more than 100 million payment cards stolen using malicious software. According to a chronology of data breaches compiled by nonprofit consumer group Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, more than 250 million records containing sensitive information have been involved in security breaches in the United States since January 2005.

To avoid falling victim to a data breach -- or to defend your already compromised information -- experts urge consumers to take the following steps:

1. Do your homework. You should be able to find out about prior security lapses involving data systems at major banks. Before doing business with a financial institution, go online for information regarding past data breaches."Dig into the company: Look at their Web site. Look at their press releases. See if they have had any data breaches. Use that to decide if you are going to accept a credit card offer," says Amina Fazlullah, legislative counsel with the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.

But know that just doing your homework won't be enough. For example, it's tough to be aware of existing back-end relationships between companies you do business with and their card processors. Banks share their data with these firms, and a breach at one of these third-party companies, such as the much-publicized one at Heartland Payment Systems, can expose massive amounts of a company's data -- including yours.

2. Prioritize information protection. Some information needs to be more closely guarded. "All security breaches are not alike. There are some that consumers should be very worried about and some that are not a cause for concern," says Paul Stephens, director of policy and advocacy for Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Your "Social Security number is really the highest risk, compared to credit card numbers," says Susan Lyon of law firm Perkins Coie in Seattle. Other information, such as health information and date of birth, represents a lower risk, but should still be protected. "People post their date-of-birth information on Facebook, which I don't do," Lyon says.

3. Stick to credit. Because lost credit card information represents a lower risk than the loss of debit card information, some experts encourage consumers to stick to using credit. While many issuers have zero-liability policies to protect consumers from unauthorized charges on either debit or credit cards, it can take more time to recover debit card funds, since they're taken directly from your account. "Your financial institution can investigate for two weeks before you get your funds back," says Stephens. During that time, an empty account can mean bounced checks and overdraft fees. Consumers may be unaware it can take so long to recover their money. "That's a point many people don't understand and why we as an organization encourage people not to use debit cards," he says.

4. Monitor all accounts. If the bank has notified you that one credit card was compromised, for example, experts encourage cardholders to monitor for unusual activity across all their accounts. That's because the threat is not limited to that one point of attack, Fazlullah says. When a hacker has one piece of information, "in all likelihood, they have others," she says. Therefore, consumers need to be vigilant about scanning their entire credit report for strange activity.

5. Continue to monitor. If your personal information is compromised, be vigilant for an extended period following the actual breach. "Data can remain unused and dormant for a time" before the identity thieves actually use it, says David Thompson of law firm McGlinchey Stafford PLLC in Cleveland. If the breach is initiated outside the United States, your information may pass through several hands as it gets sold and then used, he says.

6. Consider your options. Consumers whose data is compromised may be offered their bank's free credit monitoring service , which experts say can be a good option for spotting any follow-up fraud activity. A credit freeze can prevent fraudsters from opening any new accounts in your name. Also, free credit reports are available annually from each of the three major credit bureaus -- Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Experts advise checking these reports regularly for any unauthorized activity that could indicate identity theft. If you find a debt that isn't yours, be sure to dispute its accuracy with the lender.

7. Take extra care with medical records. While checking credit reports allows consumers to find fraudulent financial activity, medical information is less frequently used by consumers and more difficult to access in a single place. "Different information -- because of the way we use them -- creates more or less scrutiny from consumers," Fazlullah says. But lost medical data is still a cause for concern. "Medical identity theft is the only type of identity theft that can potentially kill you," says Stephens. He warns that if someone piggybacks on your insurance information (and gives their medical information to the doctor or hospital), medical professionals may have the fraudster's blood type and allergies on record instead of yours. However, notification following a breach of medical data is likely to improve. In August 2009, the Federal Trade Commission issued a rule "requiring certain Web-based businesses to notify consumers when the security of their electronic health information is breached," according to an FTC press release .

8. Deal with debt collectors. Be prepared for phone calls from debt collectors seeking money for accounts fraudulently opened in your name. If the phone does start ringing, Thompson says learn the identity of both the debt collector and the lender to whom the debt is owed. "In response to that phone call, you have to be attentive and prompt" in proving the debt isn't yours, says Thompson. A debt collection sample letter can help you get started.

9. Contact your state. Forty-five states have passed laws requiring businesses to notify consumers in the event that their sensitive personal data is stolen. (Only Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Mexico and South Dakota have not passed laws as of October 2009.) Reach out to your state's attorney general for help. Fazlullah notes that states have the best infrastructure for providing residents with redress, either administratively or via the courts.

10. Don't panic, but stay vigilant. Most instances of data breach don't result in identity theft. Even if your personal information is compromised, take heart. "As long as the consumer is paying attention to charges on their account, there isn't any liability for the consumer, in terms of real harm," Lyon says. For residents of 45 states with existing notification laws, "if consumers are vigilant, they should be in pretty good shape," Fazlullah says.

Article from: http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/10-steps-avoid-identity-theft-1282.php

A real estate investment guru who hosted a radio talk show and investing seminars was arrested in Dallas on fraud and identity theft charges, the FBI said .

Clifford Wayne Robertson, 43, of Murphy, Texas, was taken into custody Friday in Dallas by the FBI. He is accused of bank fraud and aggravated identity theft for allegedly trying to obtain financing since 2007 using someone else's personal information.

Earlier this year, TV station WFAA in Dallas aired complaints from several people who claimed Robertson bilked them out of their life savings. They described a man who built up trust using an inflated resume and operating under a host of business names who got them to buy property sight unseen. What they didn't know was Robertson also ran the companies selling the properties in terrible condition at inflated prices.

He also was accused of running up charges on his followers credit cards.

"You've got a one-man wrecking crew here that is crossing the board on all types of criminal violations -- whether it be identity theft, mortgage fraud, investment fraud, Ponzi schemes," Michael Anderson, assistant special agent in charge at the Dallas office of the FBI told WFAA earlier this year. "Our response to that is he needs to be stopped."
Robertson had been a host on CNN 1190 in Texas, and talked up his investing strategies on the show. The station is not owned by CNN. It is an affiliate. A spokeswoman for CNN said the network has nothing to do with station operations.The show does not appear on the station's schedule.

Phones at Robertson's business number all ring straight into voice mail. His Web site recruiting people to pursue loans through his firm, has no information on it about him.

A review of federal court records by WalletPop also found that Robertson filed for bankruptcy in 2003 -- showing just $8 in his checking account at the time.

John M. Bales, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, said Robertson appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Amos L. Mazzant . A spokeswoman for Bales said he is due back in court on Wednesday.

If convicted, Robertson faces up to 32 years in federal prison.

Article from: http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2009/09/21/radio-talk-show-host-accused-of-identity-theft-bank-fraud/

Last year, nearly 20,000 North Country residents fell victim to identity theft.

The regional cases wound up costing an estimated $88,000, a figure that pales in comparison to the more than $1 billion cost incurred by all upstate New Yorkers affected by similar crimes the same year.

This week, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer called identity theft “a problem that’s affecting New Yorkers and Americans in growing numbers.

“In today’s information age, our personal information is more valuable than ever … And it’s getting worse and worse,” he said during a phone conference announcing his support for new legislation that would help protect consumers from identity theft.

In 2008 alone, identity-theft cases rose 25 percent, leaving thousands of New Yorkers struggling to restore their names and finances.

Schumer said the Personal Data Privacy and Security Act would help tackle the problem in several ways, including holding companies more accountable to consumers and creating stiffer penalties for criminals looking to make a quick buck.

In years past, criminals most often picked through trash and eavesdropped to obtain personal information, but, Schumer said, the Internet and company security breaches have made it easier than ever to obtain identifying data.

Despite the easier access to information, he said, no uniform national standards exist, rather there’s a “patchwork of local, state and some federal laws” for how companies should report identity problems to consumers.

“The laws aren’t sufficient,” Schumer said, adding that companies that experience security breaches are “not required to inform consumers, and that’s outrageous.

“The sooner you know, the sooner … you can start correcting it so it doesn’t spread.”

The legislation would require commercial data firms to notify consumers and police as soon as a problem is detected and hold them accountable if they don’t.

It would also require companies to toughen and improve procedures to help protect consumer information.

He said it would also create an Office of Federal Identity Protection to help consumers with identify-theft concerns and assist victims during their recovery.

Throwing his support behind the legislation, Schumer said, “It’s amazing that there aren’t requirements for this already.”

Article from: http://www.pressrepublican.com/midday/local_story_260100351.html

Albert Gonzalez appeared on Friday in a Boston court and pleaded guilty to 20 charges. He admitted exploiting vulnerabilities in the security systems of TJX, OfficeMax, BJ's Wholesale Club and other retailers back in 2003. The records were sold and the money laundered through accounts in Latvia.

His technique - known as 'wardriving' - involved cruising around with a laptop and searching for accessible wireless internet signals. Once Gonzalez and his colleagues found a vulnerable network, they installed sniffer programs to capture the card numbers.

Things went from bad to worse: after his arrest, Gonzalez began secretly collaborating with the US Secret Service to catch other hackers. But he now admits that during this period he warned off his co-conspirators to help them avoid arrest.
Gonzalez hadalready agreed to plead guilty to the charges. He now faces up to 25 years in prison, and must hand back more than $1.65 million. Sentencing is set for December 8th.

His attorney says he feels "really bad".

Article from: http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/43962/118/

My initial knee-jerk reaction when I received the Exeter High School parental packet this summer — not on the first day of school, as the paper reported, but months before in the general packet all parents receive — was one of resistance to the idea of fingerprinting for the lunch line.

I figured it was probably an unnecessary invasion of privacy. However, I have since learned how common these biometric systems are. They are becoming more widely used because it is so difficult to use the data elsewhere.

Exeter Hospital, for example, uses fingerprinting of its doctors to facilitate computer access. Biometric technology has limited applications and certainly is less useful to identity thieves than Social Security numbers or even addresses and phone numbers, which the school already stores separately. What could a thief do with a stolen 5-point fingerprint? With this type of simplified finger scan, I can't even imagine how they could steal food from the lunch line.

There are many real threats to our personal information. Hopefully our students will one day acquire high-tech jobs (that often require biometric identification by their employers). I hope we won't have taught them to be afraid of an imaginary threat to their privacy.

Article from: http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090914-OPINION-909140314

As students head off to college this fall, there are plenty of things for them to worry about: Passing classes, making friends, decorating dorms, getting invited to the right parties, the freshman 15.

Identity theft is probably not high on the list, but maybe it should be. In three years, Saint Anselm College senior Scott Campbell, 21, a Belchertown, Mass., native, has had his identity stolen three times.

"It becomes a major inconvenience in my life," he said in an interview last week.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, 20 percent of all people who reported being victims of identity theft were between 20 and 29 years old.

Some experts say that college students are at particular risk because they are often establishing credit for the first time, are unfamiliar with banking and reconciling their checking accounts, are likely to use debit cards over the Internet, and live in close quarters.

Campbell said his three instances of identity theft happened three different ways. The first time was online credit theft. The second was part of the data breach of the Hannaford's supermarket chain. Most recently, Campbell said he made some purchases at a convenience store/gas station in Belchertown.

"My mom called me and said that she received notice that I had overdrawn my account" a few day later, he said.

Campbell thought it was impossible, so he checked his statement, and found several debit card purchases were made at the gas station last Saturday, well after his visit.

"I didn't even go there," he said. Now, he has to prove that to his bank. "I'm trying to use my alibi to prove something I don't even think that I should have to prove," he said.

Colleges have taken note of the risks to their students.

Adam Albina, chief information officer at Saint Anselm College, said the school stopped using Social Security numbers on documents eight years ago, and they are not listed on student ID cards.

"We now encrypt and protect that information even in our systems ... We don't print it on anything anymore," he said.

Identity theft is also discussed at freshmen orientation, he said, to make students aware of "red flags," such as receiving notifications from an agency that they have received a change of address that the student never sent.

"That is an indicator of either fraud or possibly identity theft," Albina said.

Students are also advised to check their credit report annually, he said, and to keep the passwords to their university accounts safe. Passwords must be changed several times a year and have various strength requirements, Albina said, to keep student's e-mail accounts secure.

"That's a venue for someone to start the process of stealing your identity," he said, since thieves could begin e-mailing banks or credit card companies from a student's account.

Southern New Hampshire University spokesman Gregg Mazzola said preventing identity theft is a "huge priority" for the school.

"There's a number of different areas on campus -- I think of public safety, information technology, our residence life folks -- who play an integral role in insuring the safety of our students' personal identification issue," Mazzola said.

The school's focus is providing information and educating students about identity theft, he said.

"We just want to make sure that our students are educated, that it's easy to access the information, and maybe more than anything, that we play a really supportive role should something happen or if anybody has any questions," he said.

It is not a matter of scaring students, just of them being aware of the problem, he said.

"We try to create a safe environment, but folks know this is a real world. Things can happen, so be aware of your surroundings. Be smart," he said.

Campbell, the St. Anselm student, said he did not think all college students were irresponsible, but sometimes their inexperience can cause problems.

"Our inexperience with banking leads us to be oblivious to where we use our debit cards and credit cards, and for what we use our debit cards and credit cards," he said.

But merchants should also bear some of the responsibility, he said.

"Even though I have 'Ask for ID' on the back of my card, so seldom am I asked for identification," he said. "Something definitely needs to be done on the merchant's end to protect consumers, responsible consumers, who use debit and credit as an alternative to cash."

Article from: http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Identity+theft+can+be+on-campus+problem&articleId=ff4e70bf-4d76-47eb-be72-ec79032ee17c