Information Security Research Institute/Newsletter/ID Theft Facilitated World Trade Center Attack

ID Theft Facilitated World Trade Center Attack

Stolen identities facilitate international terrorism and are a threat to national security (106th Congressional Hearings). Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2001) and the 21st Century form of terrorism (Lockyer, 2001). That was before September 11. Since then, "terrorism" has been redefined and the crime of "identity theft" has become a prominent term in most articles on terrorists.

Identity theft will be looked at a lot differently since the New York disaster (Elliot, 2001). Osama bin Laden's terrorists used fraudulent driver's licenses, "green cards," birth certificates, student visas, and passports to plan the 9/11 WTC attack, the 1993 WTC bombing, and the attack on the American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania (Sullivan, 2001, White, 1999, Woolsey, 2001).

In the U.S., the number of identities stolen is in the hundreds of thousands, and, in Canada where there are many terrorist cells, criminals are holding an estimated millions of pieces of stolen Canadian identification (Canadian Council of Better Business Bureaus, 2001). Criminals obtain new identities quite easily.

For Every New Day a New Identity

Fraud rings are a lucrative underground business where criminals can obtain new identities for every new criminal act (Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, 1998). In recent years, the Internet has become an international marketplace for the sale of identities (Huse, 2000). In a deep-level search used to trace criminals on the Internet, our lab uncovered numerous sites for obtaining fraudulent documents from birth-to-date and where criminals can order equipment and materials to create their own identifications using someone else's name and SSN.

For most victims, the losses are time, energy, productivity, and financial. For other victims the losses are their lives. In 12 known cases, Osama bin Laden killed Western educators to (a) obtain their paperwork, (b) assume their identities to (c) commit terrorist acts (Woolsey, 2001). The potential number of other cases of "murder for identity" is unknown. Since identity theft is usually part of any terrorist act (Guttman, 2001), stolen identities may now have to be assigned "high priority status" by law enforcement officials.

Once a Criminal Always a Criminal

Innocent victims can be labeled for life as criminals when their stolen identities are used to commit a crime (Sontag, 2001). The burden rests upon the victims to prove their innocence, which can take years and thousands of dollars in attorney fees. Although identity thefts cannot be entirely prevented (Federal Trade Commission, 2001), we have prepared "16 Golden Rules" to protect your identity.

THE GOLDEN RULES FOR PROTECTING YOUR IDENTITY

Do not carry your Social Security card in your purse or wallet,
Annually order and carefully review your credit bureau report from each of the three credit reporting agencies,
Put passwords on your bank, credit card, cell phone, and telephone accounts. Do not use your mother's maiden name, spouse or child's name, birth date, pet's name, or a consecutive series of numbers or letters as passwords,
Do not give out personal information over the telephone unless you have initiated the call,
Know the date you should receive your bank and credit card statements. A missing statement could indicate a thief has changed your address and diverted your mail,
Check your bank and credit card statements immediately after you receive them for unauthorized transactions,
Check your telephone and cell phone bills for calls you did not make,
Carry only the credit card(s) that are necessary. Cancel the cards you do not use,
Never give out personal information over a cell or wireless phone,
Give your SSN number only when necessary. Always ask to use an alternate type of identification,
Keep your personal papers in a safe place at home,
Do not give personal information over the Internet unless you initiate the contact. Shop with merchants you know.

MAIL SECURITY

First, follow the recent Federal Bureau of Investigation guidelines for recognizing suspicious mail. To prevent identity theft:

Take outgoing mail to the post office. Do not leave letters unattended in an outside, open or unsecured mailbox,
Promptly remove mail from your mailbox once it has been delivered,
Stop your mail while on vacation,
Discard unwanted mail by shredding. Shred everything that identifies you including magazine labels and pre-approved credit card offers.

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