It is crucial to protect your identity, account numbers, and personal information secure. You may well know by now that there are people preying on that information, ready to use it to exploit money and valuable privacy from you. But who exactly are these "people" preying on your information. Who makes up this dangerous group? In 2004 major players in the Internet black market were arrested. The members of this group ranged from part-time students to international members from beyond our borders. The group that was busted was called the ShadowCrew and was made up of over 4,000 members(The Cybercrime Blackmarket). They hacked into networks and extracted private information and sold what they had stolen. Today, even after the arrest of members of the ShadowCrew there are groups of criminals thriving. Many belong to online communities that sell and trade fraudulent information. Some of these criminal communities can be accessed with registration and a registration fee, and there are likely even more covert communities for the black market out there. Access to the most secure black market operations is much more difficult and the communities are undetectable. This is just a glimpse into the forces operating against innocent Internet users. We hope this information is motivation to keep your identity safe through safe Internet practices and the implementation of security software such as Personal Privacy software, AntiVirus software and AntiSpyware software.




References

"The Cybercrime Blackmarket." Symantec . 2007. Symantec Corporation. 25 Jun 2007 .