LifeLock Blog

If you have a bank account—and who doesn’t—your account is being targeted by identity theft malware, according to Sean-Paul Correll, a threat researcher at Panda Security.

“In 2007, we received more malware samples than in the previous 17 years combined,” Correll said in an interview with SCMagazineUS.com. “Our forecasts for 2008 indicated that we would end the year with some seven or eight million malware strains. However, we actually ended up with over 15 million malware specimens.”

Today’s hackers might have evolved from the nerdy boy geniuses who broke into computer systems for personal ego satisfaction, but they bear little resemblance to their ancestors. Instead, they more closely resemble the mega financial corporations they target.

“Today, there are huge illegal businesses behind this type of cybercrime, and criminal organizations are making a lot of profit from identity and data theft,” Correll said.

And just like other businesses can outsource their technology infrastructure, virus writers today can either rent the hardware, or contract with the hardware designers and owners to distribute their viruses for them.

Most of the major cybercriminal rings are in the former Eastern bloc countries, according to Correll. In fact, the criminals who hacked into then-presidential hopefuls Barack Obama’s and John McCain’s campaigns are thought to be from that region, as are the masterminds behind the Express Scripts data kidnapping.

The viruses are much like biological antigens that mutate and become antibiotic resistant; the software and technologies that used to work are becoming increasingly ineffective.

The only way an individual can protect themselves is to enlist the help of identity theft protection experts like those at LifeLock. Visit LifeLock.com to learn more about the technologies and strategies they employ to protect their nearly 1.5 million members. Enroll in their service using the LifeLock promo code Defense to receive a discount.

Threats to your personal information are coming from organized-crime rings all over the globe, according to Shawn Henry, FBI Assistant Director. “Over the past year, the malicious activity has become much more prevalent, “ Henry said, adding that the threat is worsening.

Henry didn’t name any nations specifically, but Russia and China have been mentioned by intelligence agencies in the past. And there may be a couple dozen other countries with an “aggressive interest” in private and governmental computer networks.

These new threats make it impossible for individuals to fully protect themselves from identity theft, and increase the need for comprehensive identity theft programs like those offered by Life Lock.

Only LifeLock offers eRecon, a service that continually monitors the Internet for any mention of their clients’ names, Social Security numbers, account numbers, or any other personal or financial information being bought, sold or traded by identity theft criminals.

In their reportage of Henry’s announcements, Reuters detailed some of the new and increasingly sophisticated attack strategies: (more…)