Computer Identity Theft - Stealing your identity through your computer.

And while new technologies are great, unless proper safeguards are put in place, your personal information is at a tremendous risk (not to mention your valuable computer and accompanying software!). Without these safeguards, it's not a matter of "if" your information will be stolen, rather it's a matter of "when".

So just what are all these horrible things that contribute to computer identity theft and, possibly, the complete destruction of your computer system?

A few years ago, it used to mean just viruses. Today a partial list includes: viruses, spyware, adware, trojans, worms, root kits and keystroke loggers - basically any unwanted program that finds its way to your computer system.

Most likely you've heard of some of these terms, but just exactly how do they find their way to you? And what do they actually do?

Malware can arrive on your system and contribute to computer identity theft completely without your knowledge just by visiting a hostile website that takes advantage of your browser's security holes or by hovering over a website's link via a javascript code, or by clicking on the "No Thanks" button on a pop-up window (clicking that button actually begins the download of spyware - always use the red "X" button to close a pop-up).

Or malware can arrive via you downloading freeware or shareware or a pretty screensaver or even when you or your kids download a game trial.

A major way that malware arrives on your computer is via email - that attachment you clicked on just to see what it was. And more recently, malware gets on your system via an MS Word or MS Excel document that you were expecting from someone you know (though it was probably unintentional)!

And incredulously, malware (in this case 'root kits') can arrive via that new music CD you bought and played on your computer because it may contain DRM software (copyright protection software which can alter your system's security settings leaving your computer wide open to attacks). All of this clears the way for rampant computer identity theft.

Once malware has arrived, here's a sample of what you can expect:

-Pop up windows that contain pornographic content which is not related to the particular site you're visiting (which means your child could encounter that while surfing the internet for homework help).

-The creation of security holes that may not cause harm now, but can later be accessed and controlled by whomever distributed the malware as in the case of "zombie" attacks.

-The scanning of your My Documents folder and the reporting back of all findings to the spyware creator.

-The monitoring of your computer activities (files you open, programs you use, etc.).

-The monitoring of your internet habits (websites you visit, chat room activity, emails you send, etc.).

-The monitoring of the keys you press on your keyboard which capture your user ID and passwords (FYI: copying and pasting letters into the user and password fields is a way to get around keystroke loggers - since you don't actually use the keyboard to type them in).

-A change in your browser settings (so when you click on one of your preset links, you get redirected to a phishing site).

-The overriding of your internet connection which then reconnects you via toll or international phone numbers - leaving you with a massive phone bill from a phone company you never heard of.

-And much, much more!

In addition, malware doesn't just harm your system or steal your personal information, it can commandeer your system's resources in order to spy on, or corrupt the content and links of the various websites you visit. And you're an unwitting party to that destructive (and illegal) action.

The more correct term is 'cracker' as in software cracking - but since the majority of people including the media use the term 'hacker' to refer to computer or internet criminals, I'll stick with that.

The threat of computer identity theft isn't just with your 15-yr-old neighbor who is glued to his computer keyboard and monitor. Hackers can consist of sophisticated international crime rings. With their skills these people could run big businesses or small countries. Hackers are some clever people (or at least people with a lot of time on their hands). Besides computer identity theft, criminal intent or monetary gain a hacker is looking for, in the hacker world it can be a great source of pride and accomplishment to successfully break into the so-called 'secure' financial sites, government sites, etc. - just for the bragging rights.

How do you know if your computer has been compromised before computer identity theft occurs and your bank account is drained? Here are a few of the signs:

1. Tons of pop-ups when you're out surfing the web. Though it's difficult to eliminate all pop-up windows even on a clean system (and some pop-ups are even desirable or necessary for legitimate functions), an infected system will drive you pop-up crazy.

2. Your system's performance grinds to a halt - or is just painfully slow. Something foreign is most likely using your resources. You will also notice that your hard drive activity light is continually blinking even though you are not running a backup, a system scan or something similar.

3. Your system is constantly locking up or you are getting program and system errors. While not every error means you're infected (some error codes indicate pending hardware failures or corrupt software) if this issue is occurring along with others, you could be in trouble.

4. If you use an email client like Microsoft's Outlook, you may notice a huge increase in spam. Or those in your email address book complain that they are receiving spam from you!

5. Your web browser start page changes and new or unexpected toolbars and links appear.

6. New or unexpected icons appear in the system tray (lower right part of screen).

7. Certain keys on your keyboard no longer perform their function (like the Tab key won't advance you to the next field).

Updating your operating system (e.g. Windows XP Update) this will help close security holes that the software makers are always finding and that put you at risk. Enable auto updates whenever given the opportunity so you have one less thing to remember. For your operating system you will usually find a "Windows Update" link on your programs list which is accessed through your "start" menu. Once you're connected to the updating website, you can set your updates to run automatically.

Then get and use anti-virus, anti-spyware and firewall software products. Keep them updated and set them to scan your system weekly. Some come in an all-in-one package or of course you can get them a la carte. My favorite computer identity theft protection product is the all-in-one ZoneAlarm Security Suite because it is extremely effective. I've tried all the major internet security software providers across my multiple computer systems and I've found Zone Alarm to be not only effective but easy to use. My next favorite is Computer Associates (CA) - they also offers a good all-in-one internet security package. It just comes down to your personal preferences.

If you are looking for an 'a la carte' setup then I recommend Zone Alarm Pro for your firewall, an AVG or Computer Associates anti-virus product and Webroot's Spy Sweeper and Lavasoft's Ad-Aware for your anti-
spyware needs. Lavasoft's free version is great but you want to stop spyware before it gets on your computer and not just clean it off after it has done its dirty work.

Because this stuff is not too expensive (and the alternative of having my financial or social life ruined IS expensive), I currently use several layers of protection for my computer systems: my all-in-one is Zone Labs Internet Security Suite and for extra spyware protection I use Webroot's SpySweeper and LavaSoft Ad-Aware.

I also run an anonymizer for extra web surfing privacy and to encrypt the data going over my wireless laptop connection in my efforts to avoid computer identity theft. Maybe I'm a little extreme, but even using so many good products, nothing is perfect or can guarantee 100% protection against current and future threats. Plus it helps me sleep better knowing I'm fortified - and they all work together just fine making protection against computer identity theft easy!

Please note: It can be tempting to download free so-called "spyware removal software" but many of these are actually spyware themselves. If you don't go with the above recommendations, do your own research and be sure that the software you choose is legitimate and not adding to your computer identity theft vulnerabilities.

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