ID verification's growing importance in digital age
Sep 13, 2012 Dave King
Identity theft has been among the most common methods of robbery in recent years, especially since the advent and subsequent popularity of the internet. With more ways to access sensitive information and use it to steal money from victims, ID verification has never been more important among the nation's businesses. There are many methods firms can use to ensure they are properly and adequately verifying the identifications of employees, vendors and clients before carrying out a transaction. True security is contingent upon awareness, best practices and knowing when to ask a superior about a potential risk before doing business with them. ID verification and the internet
The Fresno Bee recently offered some advice on how to ensure corporate data security is up to par, and strong enough to entirely deter identity theft. As fraudsters have a wide variety of ammunition to successfully steal personal information, business owners need to cover all of the bases in the security game. The news provider explains that passwords should be confusing, unique and only used for one account at a time. Failure to do so can leave a system open for data breach, leading to identity theft. Consider using capital letters mixed with lower case ones, as well as alternating numbers and letters. Further, the source notes that employers should educate staff on internet best practices, including knowing how to detect a scam before it's too late. Between social media and general world wide web-fare, staff members have constant opportunities to compromise their companies' ID verification practices. Lessons learned from a high-profile breach
The Los Angeles Times reported last month that Apple decided to strengthen its authentication and ID verification software and practices for all devices. This came at the heels of a scathing report from a Wired Magazine writer who had been victimized by hackers that breached Apple's systems and stole his personal information. The tech giant decided to temporarily suspend users' ability to change passwords over the phone, the source explained, while the company will later demand more stringent ID verification requirements to access information through customer service portals. Businesses, especially merchants, need to ensure that their ID verification practices are in line with compliance regulations, and would further benefit from even more comprehensive practices. This goes for transactions with clients, as well as the process of hiring and onboarding new employees, as insider threats are commonly risky in enterprises.
The Fresno Bee recently offered some advice on how to ensure corporate data security is up to par, and strong enough to entirely deter identity theft. As fraudsters have a wide variety of ammunition to successfully steal personal information, business owners need to cover all of the bases in the security game. The news provider explains that passwords should be confusing, unique and only used for one account at a time. Failure to do so can leave a system open for data breach, leading to identity theft. Consider using capital letters mixed with lower case ones, as well as alternating numbers and letters. Further, the source notes that employers should educate staff on internet best practices, including knowing how to detect a scam before it's too late. Between social media and general world wide web-fare, staff members have constant opportunities to compromise their companies' ID verification practices. Lessons learned from a high-profile breach
The Los Angeles Times reported last month that Apple decided to strengthen its authentication and ID verification software and practices for all devices. This came at the heels of a scathing report from a Wired Magazine writer who had been victimized by hackers that breached Apple's systems and stole his personal information. The tech giant decided to temporarily suspend users' ability to change passwords over the phone, the source explained, while the company will later demand more stringent ID verification requirements to access information through customer service portals. Businesses, especially merchants, need to ensure that their ID verification practices are in line with compliance regulations, and would further benefit from even more comprehensive practices. This goes for transactions with clients, as well as the process of hiring and onboarding new employees, as insider threats are commonly risky in enterprises.
