Entries from September 2008 ↓

If you thought that dumpster diving identity thieves were only looking to bilk hard-working adults, think again. According to an MSNBC article studying identity theft reports issued to the Federal Trade Commission from 2005 to 2007, there were more than 34,000 reported cases of identity theft concerning people under the age of 18, a startling statistic which many believe is actually an under representation of the crime.

Because identity theft typically involves financial matters not normally associated with children, such as bank or credit card fraud, many people do not consider the possibility that their own kids could be victimized. Also, because children aren’t engaged in frequent financial transactions the same way that adults are, it takes much longer for the scheme to be discovered allowing for massive debts to pile up over the course of many years. All of these factors lead to a long and hard road for young victims of identity theft when they finally do turn of age and are unable to receive loans, credit cards and other necessities.

In the Internet Age, where information is exchanged easily from all over the world in seconds, maintaining a strong handle of your identity is important. If you have children, it’s doubly important. ReputationDefender offers a variety of services to help defend your online reputation and protect your children online for as little as $9.95 per month.

ReputationDefender Blog found a recent survey at MSNBC that highlights what most of us (at least in tech-central Silicon Valley) have known for some time: email is absolutely vital to being competitive and in touch. But the study also found that those advantages come with a cost: namely, work-life balance.

A study published Wednesday by the Pew Internet and American Life Project shows that workers in general have mixed feelings about the increased use of e-mail and the Internet in the last few years.

In a survey of 2,134 adults in March and April, 96 percent used e-mail, the Internet or cell phones. Of them, 80 percent said these technologies have improved their ability to do their jobs, and 58 percent said these tools have given them more control over when to work.

But 46 percent also said these devices increase the demands that they work more hours, and 49 percent said that the technologies make it harder to disconnect from work when they should be off.

Half of the respondents who were employed and had e-mail said they check their work e-mail on weekends, and a full 22 percent said they checked office e-mail “often” on the weekends, up from 16 percent who said the same thing in 2002.

Much of the increase can be attributed to increased use of wireless e-mail devices like the BlackBerry, made by Research in Motion Ltd. Of those who have such gadgets, 40 percent say they often check work e-mail on weekends. A quarter often check in even when on vacation.

This writer can certainly attest to the proclivity of checking work email while on vacation. In fact, during a recent trip to Central Europe I had the distinct “pleasure” of attempting to establish a wireless network in a family apartment while trying to sort through Finnish, Serbian, Czech and Hungarian instructions for the devices involved so I could do just that. What do you think? Is email making us more productive or more stressed at work?

MSNBC has a great article on cyber bullying and the digital mischief teens are getting into in the digital age. A child’s reputation can be damaged in the real world or online if parents do not properly educate their kids about the pitfalls of cyber space.

This easy-access technology has an even darker side — cyberbullying. It’s a problem that WiredSafety.org asserts is growing even as it’s getting more attention.

“For a lot of tweens and teenagers, it just turns into a catfight online,” says Sullivan who discusses this problem regularly when she’s visiting schools.

Since the bullying doesn’t happen face to face, the anonymity can allow the issue to quickly escalate. Sullivan contends that even kids who wouldn’t bully face to face can be quickly seduced by the power rush of bullying — even bullying their friends.

ReputationDefender offers a variety of products to defend your Online Reputation and MyChild is designed to help parents keep track of their kids online.

Readers of the ReputationDefender Blog will know that we have covered the Megan Meier case for some time. News on The Smoking Gun today reveals that Lori Drew explained how she and others were “playing a joke on” Megan Meier. From TSG:

The California woman charged with orchestrating a cruel online hoax that led to the suicide of a teenage girl was once so pleased with her prank that she shared details of the ongoing scheme with her hairdresser and other acquaintances, according to prosecutors. During conversations with several individuals, Lori Drew explained how she and others were “playing a joke on” Megan Meier, a 13-year-girl who was a rival of Drew’s daughter. That joke involved Drew’s creation of a MySpace page for a “Josh Evans,” a nonexistent boy who took an online liking to Meier, but then abruptly turned on the girl, telling her on October 16, 2006 that the world would be a better place without her. A distraught Meier committed suicide later that day. In May, Drew was named in a four-count federal indictment charging her with conspiracy and computer fraud in connection with the MySpace scheme. In a court filing yesterday, prosecutors revealed how Drew spoke of the hoax as it was underway, and “denied any untoward purpose and dismissed concerns over her ‘prank.”

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While Drew appeared proud of her MySpace gambit while it was active, after Meier’s suicide she sought to cover her tracks and mask her involvement in the plot. When questioned by FBI agents, Drew said that while she knew of the MySpace hoax, she was not involved in the creation of the phony “Josh Evans” account. Additionally, when agents surreptitiously recorded a conversation between Drew and Meier’s mother, Drew “again disclaimed involvement in the scheme.”

Curious readers can click through to TSG for source documentation.

The Chicago Tribune has a piece out this week that shows college admissions officers are disqualifying applicants based on material that they find online. Sought after schools are using sites like MySpace and Facebook to learn more about students.

The idea that a lapse in cyber-judgment could alter a life trajectory might once have been dismissed as paranoia.

But with some admissions officers confirming in a new survey that they visit social-networking sites, high schoolers say getting into college is no longer only about sky-high test scores and impressive extracurricular activities. Now it means being smart about their online personas as well.

In a new survey, 10 percent of admissions officers from prestigious schools said they had peeked at sites like Facebook and MySpace to evaluate college-bound seniors. Of those using the profiles, 38 percent said it had a “negative impact” on the applicant, according to Kaplan Inc., the education services company that polled the officers.

[SNIP]

With colleges expecting a record number of applications this year, the survey results should serve as a wake-up call for both students and parents, he said.

“Today’s application is not just what you send . . . but whatever they can Google about you,” Olson said.

This illustrates the importance of cultivating a positive online reputation. Students, job seekers and executives are learning that people make judgments based on what they find on Google and Social Networking Sites. And teachers? You have to watch what you place online, as well.