http://www.maximumpc.com|JAN 2011 |MAMAMAXIMXIMXIMXIMUUUUMMPPPCC| 07
I
confess that when Gordon and Katherine pitched me this month’s
cover story, I was skeptical. Then I started researching the frequency
of identity fraud, and, holy cow! In 2009, according to Javelin
Strategy and Research’s annual “Identity Fraud Survey Report” (http://
bit.ly/aKgBRe), 11.1 million adults were victims of identity fraud. 11.
million people! That’s almost fi ve percent of the total population of the
United States.
It gets worse. The monetary damage from all this fraud was $
billion, representing a mean average of $4,841 per victim. According
to this survey, small business owners are particularly vulner-
able—they suffered identity fraud at one-and-a-half times
the normal rate. All of this is outrageous. If I told you that
you had a 5 percent chance of being robbed when going
to the ATM or bank, you’d never go. (Of course, you
could easily argue that paying $3 to withdraw cash
from an ATM is robbery in and of itself, and you’d get
no argument from me.)
When I read reports like this, I release some of the
steam accumulating between my ears by fantasizing
about fi ghting back against identity thieves. Wouldn’t
it be great if there were some way to phish the phishers
and take their money? Or if there were ways to set up a
digital decoy account that you could use to trap and zap
would-be thieves? Yes, that’s what the FBI is for, and if you
found yourself wondering what the hell a superhero is doing on
this month’s cover of Maximum PC, now you know.
I also can’t help but think that most of this fraud is preventable.
Realistically, it’s not like all the data we have floating around the
web, our multiple PCs, our home networks, our phones, and our
wallets is going to decrease over time. This makes it more important
than ever that you and I assess our data security on at least a yearly
basis. If you’re reading this magazine, chances are that you serve
as an ad hoc IT advisor to your friends and family. It’s time to give
yourself another title: Chief Security Officer. Preach the mantra of
digital security, please. After all, $54 billion is a lot of cash.MAXIMUMPC
A THING OR TWO ABOUT A THING OR TWO
ED WORDWho Is Your
Family’s Chief
Security Offi cer?
LETTERS POLICY Please send comments and questions to george@
maximumpc.com. Include your full name, city of residence, and
phone number with your correspondence. Unfortunately, George
is unable to respond personally to all queries.THE OVERSEER’S
OPTIONSAMD’s Fusion
page 8Luxury PC Cases
page 36DIY Windows
Home Server
page 64EDITORIAL
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