The Wall Street Journal reports that online job boards have become hot spots for identity thieves. Online job scams are the latest trend when it comes to identity theft, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting a variety of cases involving online job boards. For example, criminals will search the job boards for résumés posted online with Social Security numbers and other personal information, and use this identity data to apply for credit cards and loans. Or they may email job seekers, pretending to be recruiters or human resources representative, and ask for personal details for a background check. The criminals then use the information for identity theft.

Wall Street Journal reporter Dana Mattioli cites a few recommendations for job hunters to avoid becoming identity theft victims while seeking employment online:
1. When you post a résumé, clear it of personal information.
2. Take advantage of posting options to keep your personal information anonymous. You can often check a box to “hide” contact information from employers.
3. Since scam artists have been known to post fake job ads, also remove personal information from résumés you submit to potential employers.
4. Think twice before revealing personal information by email or phone.

A recent survey by financial services company Capital One and national advocacy group Consumer Action reveals that 93 percent of Americans are well aware of the growing crime of identity theft. However, despite free access to credit reports and large educational efforts, many consumers are still unaware of the financial damage that can result from the crime and what they need to do if they become victims. The survey also suggests that older and younger generations are especially vulnerable to identity theft.

The survey revealed that 32 percent of respondents carry their Social Security Cards in their wallets or purses and 45 percent incorrectly think that a new Social Security Number (SSN) can be obtained if you are a victim. In addition, 15 percent do not realize that their personal information can be used to open lines of credit, while 24 percent do not know that identity thieves can use their information to apply for a job.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Seagate Technology will soon deliver the world’s first laptop hard disk drive with built-in encryption, or data-scrambling, capabilities. The new drive, Seagate DriveTrust Technology, which will be available the first quarter of 2007, makes it easier for companies, government agencies and individuals to secure laptops against data losses or thefts.

Seagate’s security breakthrough comes as more high-value information such as financial data, digital multi-media content and personal data is stored on hard drives. For example, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently confessed that a laptop containing the records of 28 million Americans was stolen from the home of a VA employee. “That incident could have been resolved without public disclosure had they used an encrypted drive on that laptop,” says Scott Shimomura, senior product marketing manager for Seagate.

Shimomura explains how the new system works. The heart of the new hardware-based system is a special built-in chip, which encodes and decodes all data traveling to or from the disk. The manufacturer installs this encrypted drive in the laptop. The user or a system administrator must create a password in order to use the computer. “You cannot boot up your system until you have loaded the password that unlocks the encryption,” Shimomura says. There are no back doors or hidden tricks to decrypt the data. Without the correct password, the drive cannot be used.

According to KXTV, children aren’t immune from identity theft. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton says as many as 400,000 children may be victims of identity theft. The number of complaints involving kids has grown by 78 percent, making it the fastest growing segment of ID theft victims. Clinton cites a case in which an identity thief used a 7-year-old’s name, Social Security number and clean credit history to buy a $40,000 houseboat.

In response to this problem, Clinton is expanding her Privacy Rights and Oversight for Electronic and Commercial Transactions Act of 2006 (the PROTECT Act) to make sure all companies providing access to credit are able to verify the applicant’s age. She says her bill would fine credit card companies that fail to do so.

While the media focuses on online identity theft, widely publicizing losses suffered by E-Trade Financial Corp. and other online companies from online identity fraudsters, the problem of online identity theft pales in comparison to the more prevalent off-line equivalent, according to Javelin Strategy & Research. Eric Lai of Computer World reports that more than 90% of identity fraud starts off conventionally, with stolen bank statements, misplaced passwords or other similar means.

“An insignificant portion of identity fraud actually starts with the Internet,” said James Van Dyke, president of Javelin, who pointed out that many firms still rely on simple security questions such as one’s mother’s maiden name. “The Internet always grabs the headlines, but it is individuals who are close to the victims, such as family and friends, that are doing most of it,” he said.

The research firm has polled 5,000 consumers by telephone over the past three years. The sample suggests that identity fraud in all its forms resulted in $56.6 billion in losses last year. But while criminals frequently use the Internet in their schemes, relatively few cases of identity theft actually take place through e-mail or the Web or somewhere else on the Internet, according to Javelin.