Since yesterday, when Alessandro Acquisti and Ralph Gross of Carnegie Mellon University released a study demonstrating that it is relatively easy to predict an individual’s Social Security Number (SSN) using data from readily available public records, the security world has been buzzing. As someone who was given a draft copy of the paper to read…
Category: Breaches
Bombshell study: SSN relatively easy to predict
In a study that challenges current initiatives to reduce identity theft, researchers Alessandro Acquisti and Ralph Gross of Carnegie Mellon University have released the results of a study showing how easily all nine digits of an individual’s Social Security Numbers can be accurately predicted from information that is readily available in numerous public databases. Based…
Pa. man on trail of identity thief
The unusual news of a Thomas Parkin caught in New York impersonating his dead mother to collect her Social Security struck Thomas Parkin of Plymouth Meeting uncomfortably close to home. Almost a decade ago, the Pennsylvania Parkin reported his identity stolen – and the pattern of fraudulent finances over the years turned out to match…
Commentary: Gary McKinnon’s extradition battle
James Slack of The Daily Mail has an article on the extradition battle for Gary McKinnon, a case that has become somewhat of a cause celebre. The case raises a number of issues, including whether extraditing someone with Asperger’s Disorder to face a potentially lengthy prison sentence in the U.S. constitutes a serious threat to…