$

$$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

$

How Much is My Information Worth on the Dark Web?

In the April 5, 2016 report by the Identity Threat Resource Center (ITRC) there have been227 breaches compromising6,214,514 records containing personally identifiable information (PII)

The ITRC tracksdata breaches involving:

credit / debit card numbers

email/password/username records

protected health information (PHI)

social security numbers

But lets identify the hows and whys - and then what to do to avoid your information - both as an individual and as an organization from getting hacked.

Its no secret this information isthe new currency on the Dark Web.

How is Data Compromised?

Most stolen data is being sold in the Dark Web. But for how much?Heres what the recent McAfees report, Hidden Data Economy estimates:

Bitglass, undertook an experiment in 2015 to understand what happens to sensitive data once its stolen. In the experiment, stolen data traveled the globe, landing in five different continents and 22 countries within two weeks.

Overall, the data was viewed more than 1,000 times and downloaded 47 times; some activity had connections to crime syndicates in Nigeria and Russia.

Loyalty Programs to Enhance Profiling

Its not just credit card information for sale.On the Dark Web just about any information can be found,including free online accounts, including loyalty programs.

Whats the value?

At face value, maybe its for the reward points.Digging deeper maybe its to profile targets of interest.

A hacker can build an accurate profile by compiling data from the following loyalty programs: airline and hotel, gas and convenient store, Uber and Amtrak,

fast food and coffee houses, and retail programs.

By having a key identifier, ie. personal email, the Hacker now knows, Joe goes to Starbucks, corner of East and West everyday, orders a double espresso and then hops on Amtrak #7 Eastbound. He also goes to Subway for lunch between 2-3pm, corner of Smith and Weston. Every Sunday he stays home and binge watches Downton Abbey.

Loyalty programs without an e-commerce component are an easy target to hack because they may not even use encryption.Simple childs play in a

hackers world.

Avoidance of a Hack is Impractical; But Use Your Best Defenses:

Use a shredder - for everything: CDs, invoices, solicitations, etc. Change your passwords monthly Use random passwords with letters, numbers and special characters Use two factor authentication when offered Only trust your information to encrypted (https://) websites

On the Human Side:

Turn technology off when its not being used Unplug when you are away for more than a day Be smart about smart technology - do you really

need wifi on your garage door? Does your refrigerator need to communicate with you?

Pick up the phone and verify legitimate business partners

Be wary of wire transfer requests and invoice urgency emails

Dont open emails from unknown senders Dont open attachments you are not expecting Dont click on embedded links in emails

Cyber security is more than a firewall and antivirus software Defend the perimeter, use monitoring software to see unusual activity Train for the human-factor Know your baseline traffic

On the Technology Side:

Be vigilant and keep watch of your finances, but not while youre using the free wifi at the coffee shop.

www.garlandtechnology.com

in Security Projects

How to Guide:Optimizing Network Design

DOWNLOAD MY GUIDE NOW

https://www.garlandtechnology.com/https://www.garlandtechnology.com/wp-internal-verses-external-network-taps?__hssc=238528607.5.1464677411765&__hstc=238528607.4c4fc5f2aec811334956d6db1bf694b7.1458112229641.1464160158609.1464677411765.7&__hsfp=147676173&hsCtaTracking=adcf0ebd-5f41-498d-8797-e7a2a532a6ab%7Cbd145aba-5966-4b1d-8052-c30b6782f145