The Rise of Personal Data Theft

Data theft has been around for quite some time. Despite that, with all the recent large-scale breaches and thefts, its easy to see why people are just now starting to feel the warm breath of data theft on their necks. But just because more and more people are becoming aware of the presence of data thefts doesn’t mean the numbers aren’t rising.

Personal data theft is on the rise. And as your risk of attack rises so should your rate of protection. Remember, the best way to solve a data breach is by trying to prevent it in the first place. Of course, that doesn’t help those who have already had their personal information leaked; if you fall into that unfortunate category, we can help you fix your identity theft.

Don’t Be Fooled By Size:

Just because massive data breaches like those found at Target, Neiman Marcus, or the new Heartbleed bug have been making headlines doesn’t mean those are the only attacks out there. Think of those attacks (other than the Heartbleed bug) as your big box stores: while they be larger in scale and more visually dazzling, the bulk of personal data attacks come from your Mom and Pop thievery scams. According to a report by TwinCities.com, these kinds of payment system breaches only account for a total of 14 percent of all breaches. The story goes on to state the bulk of data theft occurs when people click on phishing scams or from setting up easy to guess passwords (like “password,” your address, or [yourname]123).

On The Rise:

Another report posted by C|Net gives us the numbers of just how much these attacks are rising. According to their post, 18-percent of adults in the US have had their personal data (in full or in partial) compromised–which they report is a 7-percent rise from last year.

And what’s perhaps more frightening about that rise, is that last year 21-percent of the adult population reported having their information stolen–that’s a little over one in every five adults.  That means, on a block of twenty houses, four of your neighbors have had their personal info stolen–assuming one of those four doesn’t include yourself. Which it won’t if you take steps to protect yourself.