According to USA TODAY, no one is safe from identity theft, not even the chairman of the Federal Reserve.

Chairman Ben Bernanke’s personal checking account was compromised in an identity-theft scheme after his wife’s purse, which contained her Social Security card, checkbook, credit cards and IDs, was stolen last August. Shortly after, a thief began cashing checks on their bank account. The thefts helped fuel an ongoing investigation into a major identity theft ring.

The ring was responsible for more than $2.1 million in fraudulent charges, which involved at least 10 financial institutions. Clyde Austin Gray Jr., a suspected ringleader in the scams, pleaded guilty on July 22 in a federal court in Virginia. Authorities believe that Gray hired pick pockets then made counterfeit IDs so that they could conduct fraudulent bank transactions.

“Identity theft is a serious crime that affects millions of Americans each year,” Bernanke said in a statement. “Our family was but one of 500 separate instances traced to one crime ring. I am grateful for the law enforcement officers who patiently and diligently work to solve and prevent these financial crimes.”

According to InformationWeek, a federal grand jury has indicted an alleged hacker for hacking into computers belonging to retail and financial companies and stealing more than 130 million credit and debit cards.

Albert Gonzales and two unidentified co-conspirators located in or near Russia, have been charged with attacking corporate computer networks, which resulted in the largest data breach indictment ever brought in the United States.

“This investigation marks the continued success of law enforcement in tracking down cutting edge hacking schemes committed by hackers working together across the globe,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Ralph J. Marra, Jr.

The companies hit by the alleged hackers include: Heartland Payment Systems, 7-Eleven, and Hannaford Brothers.

The indictment says the hackers used sophisticated techniques to avoid detection, like connecting to corporate computers through proxy servers, testing approximately 20 different antivirus programs to determine whether their malware might be detected, and using malware that attempted to erase signs of its presence.

Think twice before posting your birth date on Facebook or other social networking sites. According to Information Week, doing so could help identity thieves predict your Social Security number.

Online information about your date of birth and place of birth could allow identity thieves to guess your Social Security number, according to a Carnegie Mellon report. Its findings suggest that Social Security numbers can be predicted using basic demographic data gleaned from government data sources, commercial databases, voter registration lists, or online social networks.

Knowing a person’s Social Security number (SSN), name, and date of birth is typically enough to allow an identity thief to impersonate that person for the purpose of various kinds of fraud.

Researchers estimate that 10 million American residents publish their birthdays in online profiles, or provide enough information for their birthdays to be guessed.

Cybercriminals are increasing the number of attacks on social networks, according to a PC World article.

Security firm Sophos’ Security Threat Report a quarter of firms have been exposed to spam, phishing or malware attacks via sites such as Twitter , Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace. Also, two thirds of businesses are concerned that company employees share too much sensitive data on social networks, putting firms at risk.

Sophos said it has identified 22.5 million different types of malware in 2009, which is double the number identified in June 2008, while 89.7 percent of all business email received was spam.

The Security Threat Report also highlighted that the explosion of scareware or fake, paid-for anti-virus software online. The firm said it discovers around 15 sites offering these hoax antivirus programs each day – that’s a three-fold increase on the same period in 2008.

SCNow.com reported recent statistics from the S.C. Department of Consumer Affairs that show that infants and child identity theft is one of the fastest growing segments of identity theft in the nation.

If a child’s identity is stolen, it will probably be at least 18 years before the parent or child discovers the crime.
Most children are at risk of having their identities stolen because, at birth, the majority of parents get Social Security numbers for their kids. If that number falls into the wrong hands, the child may have credit problems in the future, and possibly even be turned down for jobs.

Reviewing a child’s Social Security Administration earnings statement is a good way to detect identity theft, according to the state consumer affairs office. If a child has a reported income, that’s a strong indication his or her identity has been stolen.