Computer
hackers never take a break. There is always someone out there searching for
your online information because in today’s world there is so much they can do
with it. That is why so much attention is paid to making sure this information
is protected. Infoworld.com
discusses how the password management
company, LastPass, and the company in charge of a large list hacked information
known as PwnedList, have teamed up to fight internet identity thefts from
happening. I think this is a great idea because these two companies are able to
come together and do what they do best. Working together, they can protect
passwords and notify users when information may have been compromised, so when
there are possible username/password hacks, it can be put to an end
immediately.
What
this company PwnedList does is it finds compromised log-in IDs and passwords
that have been posted in public areas and notify the user that their info is
out there. Then you can go into the website and type in your username and
password that you are concerned about. They will notify you if it appears on
their list, if it is then that means hackers may be able to find out your
information. So many people do their banking online, pay their bills online,
and have their credit card information sent to them through email or hooked up
through their Amazon.com account. Many people fail to catch the fact that their
log-in information was compromised, so the service LastPass and PwnedList can
save people a lot of financial troubles.
Many
people have concerns as to whether or not they can trust PwnedList with their
information. Who is to say that if you go there and type in your username and
password, they might just add it to their list and call it compromised even
when it wasn’t? This was a big concern and to fix this, PwnedList enables user
to enter their information using SHA-512 encryption. This is a security measure
so that once you enter your information they won’t be able to find out what it
was. Once you type in your information, you find out if it was on the list
without ever directly giving them access to your information. They also do not
store compromised passwords in their database, so if they are hacked companies
who use this will still be safe. This way, there is very low risk, but a very
high reward for possibly finding out that your accounts have been compromised.
This
system through PwnedList and LastPass is being enacted with many corporate
accounts that companies use to protect private company information. They can
pay to first check their domain and usernames with the PwnedList system, then
as the PwnedList system is updated, if any of their credentials become compromised
they will be notified. The list of compromised usernames have grown from 5
million last November to 24 million as of now, it is clear that more and more
usernames are in trouble. If a company can protect their information from
leaking, it could prove financially beneficial to subscribe to the LastPass
system. While the cost may reach into the five-figures for companies, to have
all of their information secure would be worth it.
Articles:
This Article gives hope for online shoppers, online bankers, and anyone else who uses the internet for personal information. PwnedList and LastPass are on their way to helping eradicate the “hackers”. In this day and age many people rely on the internet and are putting themselves at risk when typing in their personal information into public websites. Innocent people are still willing to take part in this risk because they want things done fast and efficiently. The internet is the best way to get things done. It seems to me that companies like PwnedList and LastPass are seriously on their way to making a big internet security break through. Since these companies are using the security system called SHA-512 encryption, once you enter your information the bad guys allegedly won’t be able to see what it was you entered, thus no ability to be hacked. This commitment to the new encryption solution makes PwnedList and LastPass more credible than other firms. I think this could really be a legitimate way to put the “hackers” to sleep for a while.
ReplyDeleteI think this article is beneficial to many readers. People need to be aware of their resources in order to take preventive actions. LastPass and PwnedList will not only create hope about the reduction of identity theft for many people, but also for many large corporations. People should make it a habit to check PwnedList often. The more on top of identity theft that you are, the less damage that can be done.
ReplyDeleteIdentity theft is often your own fault. People now a day give away their private information too freely. This is mentioned with people’s credit card information being directly hooked to amazon as well as online banking. Once the hacker gets into your amazon account they have access to your credit card information.
I believe that banking from your iphone is a way to reduce identity theft. There is a location tracker on your iphone so this is a form of authentication. Your phone has the ability to use GPS to track the exact spot that you are, at that very moment in time. If you have credit charges from another country, that is a red flag to your credit card company that it may be fraud. This tracking feature is a trait that PC’s are currently without, making identity theft easier. Smart phones are so advanced with different security apps which could be set so that locations that have higher risk for fraudulent activities will need more steps in the authentication process. Peoples phones are often glued to their hip, which is a positive for fraud purposes. Since they are constantly by our side we have constant tabs on our different accounts.
Although smart phones do have positives, they also have downfalls. They very fact that people always carry their iphone with them can increase their risk of loosing their phone with all their personal information on it. Another downfall to banking with smart phones is, in the case that the phone is stolen, it is much easier to get access to all the personal information on it, compared to retrieving all information on a PC.
I believe that a step in the right direction to lower identity theft would be to use mobile banking. You have no excuse not to be checking your accounts daily since you have your phone right at your finger tips. People should enable their smart phone banking to send alerts to their phone regarding security purposes, this way the investigation could be done at a moments notice. Everyone should download security apps to their smart phone as a preventive action to reduce identity theft.
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/07/17/why-banking-on-your-smartphone-is-safer-than-using-your-pc/