Online Identity in the News Week of 3/2/09
Each week we post stories from around the web and media that detail how identity affects society and its importance. As always, feel free to post links you have found in the comments. Here is the roundup for the week of 3/01/2009:
Background Checks Are The Final Step Before Hiring For Many Companies
Companies are being much more proactive about doing background checks on potential employees due to the large number of job seekers “enhancing” information on their resumes. A lot of the times people will lie about dates of employment, college education, and job titles thinking that the employer won’t be able to catch it. However, background checking companies are able to pick up on all the details of the job seekers education and employment history. Best thing to do is be honest about who you are.
Offbeat Name? Then Facebook’s No Friend
Really interesting article about how people with “different” last names are being rejected from Facebook thus making them create fake names (identities) which completely contradicts the whole point of Facebook. For instance Facebook does not recognize Caitlin Batman, Keith Kisser, or Bess Pancake as real people and therefore are denying them access, making them have to appeal and send lengthy emails with documents such as drivers licenses and passports. Half of the time the people give up and create fake last names based on family surnames and such, making it more difficult to connect with friends and basically forcing them into identity fraud.
Again another cautionary article about identity theft based on people posting their resume online. Having too much personal information on your resume makes the job seeker a major target for identity theft. Even having too much of a previous employers information can be detrimental to your online identity. Make sure you do your homework before responding back to an interested employer with any personal information.
What happened to maternal instinct? With today’s schools online data systems, parents are able to instantly know what their children are up to, if they have turned in their homework, failed a test, or ordered 3 cookies for lunch instead of a sandwich and fruit. From the comforts of their Wi-Fi’d homes or offices mothers and fathers with a quick punch of a password can be connected to the schools online grading databases as well as their cafeteria accounts to monitor every move of their son or daughter. But is all this invasion of privacy necessary? Isn’t it worth it for the child to squirm for a few days over a bad grade that they are afraid to bring home to mom and dad? And is it safe to have all of your childs information whether it be grades or eating habits online?
Facebook Users Warned About Dangers Of Being App Happy
A warning to be careful as to which applications you install on your facebook account because many are being targeted by cyber criminals. In the past week, several new variants of the Koobface worm, which targets Facebook users, and a number of “rogue applications” have been reported on the site, the internet security firm Trend Micro reported. Make sure you do your research before installing an application and add security features to your account to prevent identity theft.
Identity Theft Rises, Gen Y Most At Risk
No surprise that Gen Y is most at risk for identity theft because they have a much more lackadaisical approach to the internet. While they are more tech-savy than Gen X they seem to also have a more care free attitutde about the internet and the information they are sharing. Older generations are much more concerned about identity theft and the dangers of the internet. The social networks are where the Gen Y’s are really letting their guard down and sharing a lot of information without realizing the consequences that may have in the future.
How To Protect Yourself While Job Hunting Online
While these job search sites take measures to validate the identities of job seekers, they don’t seem to do the same for employers. The result is that nearly all of these job sites allow someone to identify him or herself as an employer without verification.
Study: Fraud Could Drive Consumers To Non-Bank Online Payments
Financial fraud may drive people away from online banking and towards more secure electronic payment services such as pay pal. Fraud involving credit and debit cards was the method most actively used by crooks to steal money, claiming 36% more victims in 2008 than other types of fraud.
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