Glut of Stolen Banking Data Trims Profits for Thieves

Profit margins for stolen credit-card data are razor thin these days. Indeed, profit margins on stolen credit card data have dropped to 50 cents a record, down substantially from $10 to $16 per record as recently as mid-2007, according to Verizon Business. A Washington Post story provides a nice glimpse into how much of our data are sloshing around. From the Post:Crooks who deal in stolen credit and debit cards and hacked online banking credentials have long used shadowy online forums and chat rooms to broker sales with other thieves who try to convert those goods into cash.But recently, several commercial Web sites have sprung up and created a brisk business helping thieves check the balances and limits on stolen cards, with discounts for customers who check hundreds or even thousands of card numbers at a time.The services are advertised on Internet forums that facilitate identity theft, and cater to criminals who wish to buy large numbers of stolen credit and debit cards. Using such services, the would-be buyers can quickly verify whether a random sampling of the cards is still active, and — for an additional fee — the available balance on each card. In most cases, the only barrier to new customers signing up at these services is the ability to speak and read Russian, and the ability to pay with one of several virtual currencies, such as Webmoney.Maybe it’s just me but I am fascinated by this stuff. I’m amazed by how much information these crooks have. Remember last year when I posted a story showing how criminals create credit cards — using stolen credit-card data? No? Watch the video here (it’s a 3-minute video). Again, I find this stuff fascinating. Given all of this stolen data, I’m surprised that only one of my credit cards has been breached since I got my first credit card many years ago. Anyhow, read the rest of the Post story here.