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Are you dealing with identity theft?

January 14, 2008 — 7:59am ET

Identity theft is a relatively new kind of crime that is almost as sophisticated as the computer that you use every day. If your identity and credit card number are stolen, thieves can start charging merchandise they want like that iPhone, fancy fur coat or trip to the Caribbean. Credit card companies are getting more sophisticated about policing fake charges, though. They may call you to confirm a purchase if they see a suspicious-looking charge.

In 2005, more than 8 million Americans were victims of identity theft. Of that number, nearly two million had accounts opened or other types of fraud committed with stolen information. The rest had their credit cards hijacked and pilfered. That means that every CIO has to be on alert. And it is no easy task.

"Unfortunately, the way things are set up today, there is way too much information available in way too many places," said Adam Levin, chairman of Identity Theft 911 and a former director of New Jersey's Division of Consumer Affairs. If someone fraudulently uses a credit card, the card company ordinarily will reimburse the consumer for any loss. Nevertheless, CIOs working for a company that issues credit cards must be on the alert. This is a trend that is growing, not shrinking, and you better have a plan to deal with it in place, or you could end up with a big headache.

For more on the surge of ID theft:
- See this Washington Post article 

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By Ron Hatton | Posted 11:24pm | January 14, 2008

There is a new type of credit and debit card fraud, thanks to the advent of the new contactless payment systems.

These cards, over 50 million of which were issued last year in the United States alone, are embedded with a miniature micro-processor and an antenna that broadcasts the account information of the card holder at 13.56 MHz. These contactless pay stations use a system that is not only inexpensive to duplicate on the home hobbyist's workbench, but quite inexpensive, as well. In fact, $20 and a trip to your local Radio Shack will give you all you need to become a thief of this sort.

They call themselves "Cloners."

The reason for the name is the process they use. They set their antenna, which fits easily into purse or pocket, to "ping" for cards that are RF (Radio Frequency) Enabled. The card responds by transmitting all necessary information to charge the account. This is, after all, what it was programmed for. The laptop or PDA gathers, or "Harvests" the data received. They do this in the most public of places, and it is absolutely undetectable when occurring.

From that point, the thief will then carry the information home or to another suitable location and begin the cloning process. Another wave of the antenna over a blank card, which can be purchased for two or three cents, and they have a form of payment that is electronically indistinguishable from the original.

Sadly, Organized Crime and Terrorist organizations such as the LTTE out of Sri Lanka are using credit card fraud like this to fund their destructive activities.

Does that scare you? It should, and it did us. To respond to this threat, Wisteria House Products of Phoenix Arizona has developed the Armadillo Dollar. It is a simple, low-cost device you slide into your wallet that blocks the transmission of these radio waves.

If you decide you want to put another layer of protection between you and the wireless thief with our product, use the code “TopDog” when ordering. That’ll take $5.00 off the regular $25.00 price, at least while we’re introducing it to the market.

It is, quite simply, the BEST RF-Shielding product of its kind in the world.

You have my word on it.

I am Ron Hatton.

We are www.ArmadilloDollar.com and proud to be All-Americans!

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