25 arrested in dollar-store ID theft ring

…

A three-month investigation of the Governor’s Fraudulent ID Task Force, “Operation Dollar Store” targeted 14 dollar-stores across the Valley suspected of selling cell phones activated with false identities to people who claimed they had no legal identification.

Authorities believe some of the phones,… were used to facilitate organized crime operations. Similar phones are widely used by … fake id manufacturers,…

…

It could be months before authorities determine which identities belonged to actual people.

“It’s impossible to tell, and that’s the frightening part,” Morrison said. “Some of these were real victims in the sense of identity theft and some were fraudulent names. It’s going to take a while to see who are the real victims.”

…

OK I can see that selling cell phones activated with a fake ID is a big problem, untraceable phones are important to those involved in crime. But what I don’t get is the comment-

Authorities believe some of the phones,… were used to facilitate organized crime operations. Similar phones are widely used by … fake id manufacturers…

Since when are cell phones important to fake id manufacturers? Most of them operate perfectly legally on the internet selling Fake IDs.

Why would a legitimate business need untraceable cell phones, am I missing something here?

Seems like the Governor’s Fraudulent ID Task Force is trying to give those who make fake IDs a bad name.

More about ID Cards.

SEGAMAT: Malaysians will soon get to have personalised registration number plates for their vehicles, by paying an extra fee.

“However, there are still some finer details which we need to look into before Malaysians can apply to have their own personalised registration number plates,” Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy said here.

“We are also looking into the formats for the plate, whether to allow names, numbers or both,” he said after opening the Segamat Road Transport Department branch office here yesterday.

The Road Transport Department (JPJ) has submitted the proposal to the ministry for evaluation.

Imagine that, in Malaysia personalised car number plates are currently NOT available where in the west it’s the norm (at least I assume it’s the norm?)!

I wonder why they’ve never introduced them until now, would be interested in a comment if anyone knows the history of this?

Reasons not to go to work today:

1. It is rainy outside.
2. My apartment is dry and warm.
3. I have an old friend staying with me.
4. She is not planning on getting up until 10:00.
5. The manager of our office took everyone out for dinner last night.
6. Then I stayed up late talking with my friend.
7. I slept on the couch.
8. It’s tough to get a good night’s sleep on the couch.
9. I am tired.
10. Very tired.

And yet, I sit here at my desk, noticing that there aren’t many others here. Maybe they made a list of reasons not to go to work while they were walking to the elevator and decided to go back home. Not that I considered that. Much.

If I had decided to turn around, I would have headed to Chicago Midway Airport Parking, parked my car for the day (short term parking of course) and spent the day in the airport pretending to be a passanger from, no going to some Exotic Travel Location. Can’t think of anything exotic now, just Jamaca comes to mind

Identity theft occurs when someone acquires key pieces of your personal information with the intent to commit fraud. Most commonly, they use this information to open new credit accounts and run up huge debts. However, this is not the only use of stolen personal information. It can also be used by someone looking to immigrate illegally, carry out terrorist activities, assume a new identity, or even to blackmail you or someone in your sphere of relationships.

How does a thief gain access to your identity?

While most people believe their greatest exposure to theft is through the Internet, experts say your mailbox (where thieves can obtain account statements, new checks and credit offers) and your garbage are the easiest ways criminals can access your personal information. The theft of your purse or wallet is also common. And then there’s those situations in which you willingly give out information over the phone (to someone who calls with a great offer) or over the Internet in response to a fraudulent email (commonly referred to as “phishing”).

Once a thief has your information, he generally has weeks (even months) before you become aware that there’s a problem. In fact, it may not become evident until you suddenly start receiving bills for revolving accounts you never set up, in towns you never visited, for items you never purchased. By this time, your credit report has become peppered with new accounts that you had no idea existed.

Once that happens, it’s a nightmare trying to undo the damage.

However, there are ways to be proactive and protect yourself. For instance, most credit card companies offer services that will monitor your account for unusual activity, notify you immediately if there’s a problem, and protect you from the fraudulent charges. The three leading credit reporting agencies in the United States: Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian, each offer monitoring services as well (although that’s all they do … monitor and inform).

There are other ways you can help minimize your potential risk as well:

Never share your banking information, particularly your personal password, with anyone unless you initiated the contact or you personally know the person you’re dealing with. Legitimate banks and other businesses will not call or email you requesting your personal account information. When you receive a request for your account information (whether it’s a bank account, a credit card account, or even a PayPal or eBay account), red flags should go up.

Always guard your PIN (personal identification number) at ATMs.

Sadly, you shouldn’t leave outgoing mail in your home mailbox for pickup. Either take the mail to the post office or drop it off at a secure postal mailbox.

Never carry your Social Security card in your wallet. If you have to carry credit cards in your purse or wallet, as most of us do, keep them to a minimum. Preferably a single card.

Never use your credit card on the Internet unless you’re initiating the purchase and it’s done through a secure connection. You can quickly identify a secure connection by checking for “https” in the URL or the lock icon in the corner of the screen.

Keep a list of your credit card and bank account numbers in a secure location, such as a locked safe or a safety deposit box.

Always shred personal documents. This includes all those credit card offers you receive in the mail, old account statements, billing statements, credit card statements, etc. And use a double-cut shredder to be on the safe side. You can pick one up at nearly any office supply store for under $40.00.

Keep track of your bank and credit card statements. Make sure they arrive every month and monitor them for any unusual activity. If a bill doesn’t show up, it can be an indication that someone has set up a change of address without your knowledge.

Order a credit report from all three agencies (Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian) twice per year, review them, and compare them carefully. If you discover any fraudulent entries immediately contact each agency, explain the situation and follow the proper procedures to correct the problem.

Identity theft is on the rise throughout the United States, but that doesn’t mean it has to happen to you. Take a few diligent precautions and your chances of never becoming a victim increase dramatically.

Want to check your credit report for free? Learn exactly how to get yours here: The Quickest, Easiest Way To Obtain A Free Credit Report

What was perhaps even more interesting, however, was to discuss the state of politics in Europe. One of my biggest concerns in this country is how divided we’ve become. It scares me that my republican friends hate the democrats so much and my democratic friends hate the republicans so much.

Paolo told me that he felt Europe was similar. We discussed the European constitution and he described the battle over the place of religion in that constitution. Ultimately he said that they decided to keep religion out of the constitution, but the battle was fierce. He feels Europe is divided much the same way American is. It was interesting because I usually don’t think of Europe in those terms.

And with the change in season, it’s time for a change in cocktail. Last winter was all about bourbon, but while bourbon should retain a place in your holiday season’s imbibing (mix a couple fingers of Maker’s Mark in with your ‘nog as you sit by the tree this Christmas Eve), it is the martini that will get you through the office holiday party this year.

Like the season, the martini is crisp and cold. Made with gin, never vodka, the martini should be served straight up in a martini glass (the high-healed dress shoe of the glassware world). Try it with Bombay Sapphire for a classic taste or with Beefeater’s Wet for just a hint of grapefruit. Use a twist instead of olives to give the drink a fresher taste – the citrus also makes this cocktail the kissing cousin of last summer’s drink, the gin gimlet.

3 oz. Bombay Sapphire or Beefeater Wet gin
1/2 oz. Dry vermouth
garnish with a twist.

Shake all ingredients over ice until very cold. Strain into a cocktail glass, rub rim of glass with lemon peel and serve with a lemon twist.

Maybe it was the walking 4 miles a day on concrete in them, but after a couple years I finally wore through the soles. I was crushed, but I had heard that you could have them “recrafted” by Allen-Edmonds, so I dropped them off at the store to try out this service.

I just got them back (they mail them back to you). Wow. They’re look and feel brand new. It’s amazing. And I’m told you can do this over and over again. I’m hooked.

Tuesday is the most popular day. What’s up with that?

8AM is the busiest hour of the day – almost twice as busy as any other time.

People from at least 11 different countries read this blog.

Almost 20% of people spend over 30 minutes on the site at a time.

A surprisingly high percentage of people who found this site via a search engine searched for “pepsi holiday spice”.

Including that last statement in this entry will probably increase that percentage.

A flatteringly high percentage of you have added this site to your ‘favorites.’

Thank you

I really like it. It combines some of the best features of Safari with the stability and rendering accuracy of the Mozilla engine. Plus, like Safari, it’s fast and incorporates tabbed browsing. It has some nice features of it’s own, which I’m still learning. Right now I’m loving the really cool real-time “find” feature. Oh, and Firefox is free free.

I’ll probably still use Safari for most things at home, if for no other reason than I’m comfortable with it and it’s so nicely incorporated into OS X, but at work I’m switching to Firefox. In fact, I’m using Firefox to post this right now.

Yet another reason to abandon Explorer. As if you needed another.

There’s a FireFox link on the right menu, for anyone wanting to try it.

I’ve got a fire going in the fireplace, the first one of the year. I made myself a latte this morning, complete with homemade vanilla syrup. I’m eating a bowl of Fruity Pebbles cereal because I am five and because it is my favorite no-redeeming-value cereal. There’s some jazz playing softly on the stereo.

And in this pleasant environment, I’m getting a lot of quality writing done. Life is good.

Hope your morning is going just as well.