According to a 2009 Facebook ID Probe from Sophos UK that was conducted to see how easily users of social networks give out personal data that could lead to identity theft, more than 40 percent of those in the probe accepted an invitation to be friends with two fictitious users.

Sophos created two female Australian Facebook users – Daisy Feletin (21 and single) and Dinette Stonily (56 and married) – and each sent friend requests to 100 randomly-selected contacts in their age group and then waited to see who would respond.

The findings show Facebook users are more susceptible to identity theft than ever, as over 40 percent of both age groups blindly accepted Facebook “friend requests,” and the younger users were more trusting than older users, 46 percent to 41 percent.

More troubling for the 20-something crowd, 100 percent of them shared email addresses, 89 percent revealed full dates of birth, 74 percent gave college or workplace information, and 50 percent shared home towns – key information that makes identity theft easier to commit.

To avoid identity theft and other online scams, social networking users are advised to not accept friends blindly, learn the privacy settings of social networking sites they join, and assume information revealed on social networking sites will be on the Internet forever.

MyBackgroundCheck.com – a leading provider of consumer requested and applicant supplied “personal” background checks – allows individuals to keep personal information current, accurate, and safe from identity theft. To learn how personal background checks help prevent identity theft, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

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According to the U.S. Department of Labor's “VOLUNTEERING IN THE UNITED STATES, 2008” report, 61.8 million people (26.4 percent of the population) volunteered at least once between September 2007 and September 2008. With that many volunteers per year, some kind of volunteer background check and tracking system is obviously needed.

This need to provide a safe environment for the vulnerable populations that nonprofit organizations serve – including children, the elderly, and those people with special needs – has led to the need for a comprehensive and cost-effective volunteer tracking and risk management system to be made available to the nonprofit sector.

Realizing the safety and security of those served is a top priority, many nonprofit organizations have partnered with companies that provide criminal background checks that look for “red flags” such as drug felonies, domestic violence, child abuse, and sex offender crimes in the pasts of not only volunteers, but the employees of nonprofits too.

By screening out potential “bad hires” with background checks, nonprofit organizations reduce liability while ensuring the safety of their members and communities served. The consequences of a poor hiring decision could include: negligent hiring lawsuits, decreased workplace safety, lowered productivity, and bad publicity that could make securing donations more difficult.

To meet the specific requirements of nonprofit organizations, a comprehensive and cost effective web-based volunteer and employee tracking system must exceed other more typical background check programs in order to provide volunteer, employee, and community protection at the local, regional, and national levels.

MyBackgroundCheck.com — a leading provider of applicant supplied background checks — has partnered with many nonprofit organizations to ensure the security of volunteers, employees, and communities. The company’s unique Volunteer/Employee Tracking System effectively manages risk while significantly reducing background check costs.

By selecting MyBackgroundCheck.com, nonprofit organizations give volunteers and employees a useful resource. With an account, volunteers and employees can view background check results, manage personal information, and receive notification of changes to their background check information and who is requesting access to their information.

To learn more about volunteer background checks and the volunteer tracking system from MyBackgroundCheck.com, visit www.volunteertrackingsystem.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

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As further proof that identity thieves will take advantage of any opportunity for identity theft – including the H1N1 Virus – the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is reporting on its Health Related Hoaxes and Rumors page that it has received reports of fraudulent H1N1 Virus emails referencing a supposed “CDC sponsored State Vaccination Program” that are actually attempts to gain personal information to commit identity theft.

The CDC reports that the fake email messages attempting to gain information for identity theft – a process known as “phishing” – asks users to create a “personal H1N1 (swine flu) Vaccination Profile on the cdc.gov website” and that “every person that has reached the age of 18 has to have his/her personal Vaccination Profile on the cdc.gov site.”

However, the CDC has NOT implemented a so-called state vaccination program for the H1N1 Virus requiring registration on www.cdc.gov, and warns that users clicking on the “Create Personal Profile” link in the email risk having malicious code installed on their system that could steal personal information and lead to identity theft.

The CDC also reminds users to take the following steps to reduce the risk of being a victim of the H1N1 Virus phishing attack that could lead to identity theft:

• Do not follow unsolicited links and do not open or respond to unsolicited email messages.
• Use caution when visiting un-trusted websites.
• Use caution when entering personal information online.

An example of the H1N1 Virus phishing email can be seen at www.cdc.gov/hoaxes_rumors.html.

MyBackgroundCheck.com is a leading provider of consumer requested and applicant supplied background checks that allow consumers and jobseekers to keep their personal information accurate and secure from identity theft. To learn how personal background checks can help prevent identity theft, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

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An article from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) online – “Patient ID Theft Rises” – states that medical identity theft is on the rise and expected to get worse as more people left uninsured after losing jobs in the recession use the coverage of friends, relatives, and even complete strangers to attain health care.

According to the WSJ article, medical identity theft – which occurs when someone uses another person's identity to obtain or make false claims for medical services or goods – is the fastest-growing form of identity theft, and the majority of the fraud is committed using patient information purchased from medical workers.

The WSJ also reports that the largest increases in medical identity theft are in retiree-heavy states such as Arizona, California, Florida, New York, and Texas. Two examples of medical identity theft are cited in the article:

• A clerk at a medical clinic in Florida gave the personal information of over 1,000 Medicare patients and to a relative who then made almost $3 million in false Medicare claims.
• A man in Pennsylvania discovered that his identity was used by another person at five hospitals in order to receive more than $100,000 in medical treatments in his name.

Even more troubling than the financial consequences of unpaid medical bills, medical identity theft can leave the identity theft victim’s medical files riddled with incorrect information concerning blood type, allergic reactions to medicines, and overall medical history, the WSJ reports.

The best approach for consumers in dealing with medical identity theft, according to the nonprofit World Privacy Forum, is to request copies of medical records when going to the doctor in order to have accurate records on hand to rebuild medical files if medical identity theft should strike.

Keeping a close watch on ALL personal information – from medical files to credit reports to criminal records – is a good way for patients, consumers, and jobseekers to ensure that all personal data is up-to-date, accurate, and secure from all forms of identity theft.

MyBackgroundCheck.com is a leading provider of consumer requested “personal” background checks that allow consumers to keep their private information up-to-date, accurate, and safe from identity theft and fraud. To learn how personal background checks can help prevent medical identity theft, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

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While “Black Friday” – the day after Thanksgiving – is known as the beginning of the holiday shopping season when retailers go from “red” (posting a loss) to “black” (turning a profit), online shoppers recognize “Cyber Monday” – the Monday after Black Friday – as the beginning of the online holiday shopping season.

However, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are also the beginning of the holiday season for cyber-criminals looking to commit identity theft and fraud. According to the 2009 State of the Net Survey from Consumer Reports, online scams that included identity theft and fraud cost consumers $8 billion over the past two years.

As a result, security technology company McAfee, Inc. is warning online shoppers about “The Twelve Scams of Christmas” that could lead to identity theft and fraud during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the rest of the holiday shopping season.

To protect themselves during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday shopping season, McAfee offers consumers tips on how to avoid identity theft and fraud and steer clear of “The Twelve Scams of Christmas” that could make their holidays a little less happy. Each of the following are examples of ways cyber-criminals can trick consumers into giving away personal and financial information in order to commit identity theft, fraud, and other crimes:

1. Fake charity websites;
2. Fake delivery invoices;
3. Fake “New Friend Request” e-mails;
4. Holiday e-cards carrying computer viruses;
5. Fraudulent discount jewelry websites;
6. Unsecured, public area computers;
7. Fraudulent holiday-related websites;
8. Job-related e-mail scams;
9. Auction site fraud;
10. Password theft;
11. E-mail banking scams, and;
12. Ransomware scams.

In order to avoid identity theft, fraud, and other scams during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the rest of the holiday shopping season, McAfee advises online shoppers to protect their computers and personal information by: avoiding suspicious e-mail links; updating security software; shopping on secure networks; changing passwords, and; using common sense.

In other words, if a deal seems “too good to be true” during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday season, it could lead to identity theft and fraud instead.

MyBackgroundCheck.com is a leading provider of consumer requested “personal” background checks that allow consumers to keep their private information up-to-date, accurate, and safe from identity theft and fraud. To learn how personal background checks can help prevent identity theft and fraud during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday shopping season, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

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