Who Is To Blame?
Identity theft is a cybercrime and is defined as "the fraudulent appropriation and use of someone's identity or personal data or documents". It is often difficult to catch cyber criminals as anonymity is easily acquired on the Internet and can be done anywhere in the world. Methods such as phishing scams, hacking, and many others are used to commit this crime. According to the 2017 Identity Fraud Study conducted by Javelin Strategy & Research, it was found that in 2016 alone, $16 billion was stolen from 15.4 million U.S. consumers. This is higher than that of 2015, which was $15.3 billion stolen from 13.1 million U.S. consumers. This suggests that identity theft is a threat to society as it is affecting the general public (consumers and businesses). With identity theft complaints being the third most reported according to Federal Trade Commission (FTC), little is being done by the general public to avoid becoming the next victim of an identity theft crime. The failure to realize the consequences of not taking measures for prevention is indirectly making it easier for cybercriminals to commit crimes. The general public is "willing" victims of identity theft, as they do not prioritize educating themselves on digital safety, the privacy of personal information shared on social media and the lack of protection when using public Wi-Fi.
Firstly, the lack of initiative made by the general public to educate themselves on digital safety is how they are allowing themselves to be "willing" victims of identity theft. The influence of technology on the general public is becoming stronger over the years with the rise in innovation across technological companies. With the freedom and accessibility that comes with this technological advancements, it is necessary for the general public, as digital citizens to not just embrace technology without taking into account the consequences that come with it. When hacked, detrimental damage can be done to a person as the hackers have access to important and personal information such as a person's bank account details, social security number, and many others. This gives hackers sufficient knowledge to be able to steal a person's identity, which is why it is essential for the general public to be educated on measures to protect themselves. Businesses are also at risk as according to the Identity Theft Resource Center, in 2016, there was a 40% increase in data breaches, which U.S. companies suffered from. The data indicates a pattern in increased instances of hacking, which means it is a growing threat to society as a whole. The chairman of the security company CyberScout LLC said in an interview that such instances occur because many companies do not train their employees about data privacy and security. When people realize the importance of educating themselves on digital safety, only then will they implement it to different aspects of their lives.
The general public may argue in defense that technology companies should be responsible for their safety because consumers spend money on their devices, thus they should innovate tighter security in order to secure a consumer's information. Although it is imperative for companies to prioritize the safety of their consumers by innovating better security systems for their devices, there needs to be an understanding that hackers are also evolving their techniques to compete with the evolving technology. Crimes that happen outside of the cyber world constitutes of the same logic. For example, the police force's job is to ensure the safety of citizens, but does that mean citizens should not have to take extra precaution and sleep with their doors open at night? If citizens get robbed, is the police solely blamable for not doing their job? Therefore, there is no harm in taking extra precautions. Nobody is exempted from potentially getting hacked, so it is only wise to implement measures to protect one's confidential information.
Secondly, disclosing personal information on social media can make it easier for cybercriminals to do their job. The usage of social media platforms is growing worldwide, which gives cybercriminals a bigger target market to choose from. People who expose their personal information on these platforms are making themselves vulnerable to identity theft. These people might argue sharing personal information may not be useful for identity thieves unless it is directly sharing passwords, which gives them easy access to other useful information about a person. Although sharing passwords online makes it easier for cybercriminals to do their job, it does not necessarily mean that they cannot obtain useful information about someone in other ways. They can observe a person's habits and many other characteristics, which they can then use to impersonate that person and scam others. Another instance is when someone updates their status on any social media site indicating that they are on a vacation, their home could be vulnerable to burglary. For an identity thief to get deeper insights into a person gives them sufficient information to stalk, steal identity, as well as manipulate others close to that person. Thus, it is necessary for people to be responsible for their own safety by limiting or filtering the personal information they choose to share online.
Lastly, the frequent use of public Wi-Fi can put the general public at risk of exposing personal information, which can then be used for identity theft. When people use the public Wi-Fi, they often forget that the data transmitted is usually unencrypted, which means that not only is the Wi-Fi public, but their data is too. The data accessed during the usage is easily accessible by others using the same network, given that they know how to do such tricks used by cybercriminals. This is the reason why Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks are common, hackers take advantage of vulnerable public Wi-Fi by looking for weak passwords or security holes to intercept any information about users connected to the network. Using public Wi-Fi is an individual choice, thus they themselves should be held accountable if their information is exposed. To prevent this, the general public needs to take precautions using public Wi-Fi such as using virtual private network (VPN). Implementation of VPN will help encrypt information in devices while using public Wi-Fi.
The general public may argue that conforming to measures such as using VPN is not something everyone is willing to invest on because of different financial capabilities. According to Harris Poll survey, "45% of U.S. adults who don't already use a VPN would purchase a subscription if it was affordable, and 24% said they would purchase a subscription if their identity were compromised". Fortunately, VPN subscriptions have become more affordable. If cost is still an issue, people will have to weigh the risk of having their identity stolen against their wish to have their personal information be exposed on public Wi-Fi.
In conclusion, identity theft is one of the fastest growing cyber crimes and with the continuous growth of the technology industry; it continues to rise every year. Unfortunately, the general public does not understand the seriousness of this issue until they become victims of it by not educating themselves on digital safety, sharing personal information on social media and using public Wi-Fi unprotected. If they start to implement precautions, not only will their chances of becoming the next victim decrease but it will also help combat identity theft.