ID theft risk to inactive accounts
09.12.2008
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The average online Canadian adult has nine online accounts from shopping and email to social networking and dating sites according to a recent Ipsos Reid poll. The poll also reveals that on average, two of those online accounts have not been used in the last year, translating into approximately 41 million inactive accounts. According to Capital One Canada, the company which commissioned the survey, opening an online account could require personal information such as names, addresses, dates of birth or telephone numbers, information that could be used by identity thieves. The company says Canadians appear to be neglecting these inactive accounts primarily due to a lack of awareness or carelessness. For example, twenty-eight (28%) of online Canadians did not know it was necessary to close an inactive account, 23% forgot about their account all together, and 15% forgot their password. ID Theft Protect suggests that all bank/checking account holders close any unused online accounts and profiles that contain personal and/or financial information. Source: digitalhome Search Related News: id theft, id fraud, identity theft, identity fraud, privacy, data |