Outfits mine Voter Registration records

Vanity Fair reports that database broker Aristotle is amassing, cross-referencing and selling voter registration and political donation information:

“People are getting hassled by marketing firms and hassled by consultants, and much of that information comes from signing petitions or off the voting databases."

In most states, voter registration databases are public information, by law. The governments sell this information, along with driver's license data.

"One such [commercial data] supplier is Acxiom, the Arkansas-based behemoth that stores unimaginable quantities of data. In 2003, a single hacker stole Acxiom records on 20 million people, according to Washington Post reporter Robert O’Harrow’s 2005 book, No Place to Hide."

Aristotle's data gatherers might soon be taking photos in public and harvesting data-rich magstripe information from credit cards and identity cards:

"Phillips picks up one of the custom-designed pocket-P.C. scanners that go with the Aristotle 360 system. With them, canvassers working for campaigns will swipe credit cards and driver’s licenses, take pictures of voters using an embedded micro-camera, and instantaneously feed all of the resulting information into the database."

The inescapable conclusions I draw from this are that voting and making political donations are much more likely to result in an individual's inclusion in a database, whether the data mining effort is governmental, political, or for more direct monetary profit. The magnetic-strip scanners are a reminder about how electronic cards can facilitate mass surveillance of a type unintended by their issuers.

In situations when Social Security Numbers and Social Insurance Numbers can't be used as database keys or for matching individuals, mailing addresses and date-of-birth (DOB) is frequently used. Therefore, remember to keep your full name, DOB and mailing address (hopefully it's not the same as your street address!) to yourself as much as possible.

WSJ: Home invasions target wealthy

The Wall Street Journal reports that the higher-profile rich are being targeted for home invasion robberies:

One reason for the rise in home invasions is demographic: The numbers of rich people with homes to plunder has risen fast in recent years. But police and security experts say robbers are hitting homes more because their traditional targets -- banks, stores and offices -- have been hardened with closed-circuit video surveillance, alarms and guards. By comparison, security at many private homes remains lax, they say.

Increasingly, wealthy and high-profile individuals must step up security at home and be vigilant in their cars to avoid becoming victims, security experts and police say. They may also need to reduce the amount of information they reveal about themselves on the Internet in places like Facebook, and in the media. And perhaps most importantly, they should thoroughly investigate the background of anyone who has access to their home, because many robberies are inside jobs.

Several security and alarm experts say crimes like these can be prevented with a perimeter motion-detection system that sounds whenever someone drives or walks onto a property. Many alarm systems wire only the doors and windows of a home; the problem with that, security experts say, is that by the time someone trips the alarm, it can be too late. Moreover, any alarm system has to be armed to work, and often, they aren't.

Home-invasion robbers also pick their victims by staking them out in public and following them home.

Police and security experts say that to avoid this type of robbery, people should be alert to whether they are being followed before driving onto their property, and if they are, to call the police or drive to a police station. Houses should be well-lighted with automatic exterior lights. Additionally, security experts advise clients to avoid drawing attention to money and possessions while they're out and about. They also recommend reducing the amount of detailed personal information that can be found on the Web.

While at home, it is a mistake to open the door without verifying the identity of a visitor first and to accept unscheduled deliveries. Security experts say homes should be equipped with a voice-video intercom system with cameras trained on the doors and the grounds, and deliveries should be sent to a post-office box or family office instead of to the residence.

Keep your smartphone in your sight

Another reason why your mobile smartphone shouldn't be out of your sight:

FlexiSPY Pro is tracking software that can be installed on a "smart" mobile phone by anyone who has access to the phone for a few minutes. After installation, it copies the smartphone's SMS text messages, call history and other data to FlexiSPY's server four times a day to be accessed by the party who installed the spyware. The phone's microphone can even be activated remotely so the smartphone can be used remotely as a passive bug.

I haven't tried the product, but Airscanner for Windows
Mobile claims to detect threat spyware programs such as Mobile-spy and FlexiSPY.

So far, this software can only be installed if someone has physical access to the Windows Mobile (or other type) smartphone. Regular cell phones that can't run third-party programs are not vulnerable to this backdoor software.

"Dietrich" tracked by medical bills

(CBS) LOS ANGELES A 26-year-old man was in custody Friday after being on the run for more than a year following a high-speed crash in Malibu that left a rare $1 million Ferrari Enzo in pieces.

The driver of the Ferrari, Swedish national Stefan Eriksson, had previously claimed that a mysterious German man named "Dietrich" had been driving when the collision with the utility pole occurred. Eriksson failed two alcohol breath tests at the scene of the crash, and was later charged with embezzlement related to leased car exports and his video game firm Gizmondo.

Irish native Kearney, who was a passenger in the Ferrari Enzo during the crash, fled the country after the crash but was smuggled back into the U.S. a year later from Tijuana, Mexico.

Authorities tracked him down this week, thanks to medical bills generated after his return to California and sent to a Marina del Rey address, the source said.

Kearney was charged with perjury and obstructing, both misdemeanor crimes. Why would police track this man via medical bills for two misdemeanors? In order to force him to testify against Eriksson in a media-frenzy drunk driving case, undoubtedly.

Medical records are an open book to anyone with a subpoena. All too often medical professionals allow access to records after only an informal request from a detective or investigator. More troubling is the ease with which private investigators and other outside parties seem to get medical records via bribery, pretexting, or court-ordered legal discovery.

If Kearney hadn't had his medical bills sent to his address of record -- the address he gave to police investigators at the crash site -- he might not be under indictment for two misdemeanors today.

Remember, also, that lying to police is usually a misdemeanor and lying to federal agents is a felony. Just ask Martha Stewart.

Read the Findlaw article "How to Avoid Going to Jail under 18 U.S.C. Section 1001 for Lying to Government Agents" for more information on lies within federal jurisdiction and how to decline a federal interview by invoking counsel.

Revenge website targets credit score

Foxnews.com reports yesterday that an illegal website offered to ruin the credit score of anyone for a small fee, and even to arrange to have them suspected of bank fraud.

Making numerous credit applications with the victim's SSN and DOB and invented addresses and names will cause the person's credit to be put on hold, claims the website.

The UK-centric web-based service also offered to create false bank documents, identity cards, automobile registry papers, paychecks and tax forms.

Such fraudulent services are doubtless short-lived when discovered by the public and law enforcement agencies, but this report is illustrative of the types of financial and bureaucratic vulnerability most people have in modern society. You can imagine the potential ramifications in your life if your credit cards, credit line and bank account were suspended, even if only temporarily, and the trouble and costs to have the situation resolved.

Let this threat serve as a another reminder to shred documents, jealously guard your financial privacy and personal information, check your credit report, and avoid situations that could compromise personal data.

Irish Grandparent? Irish Passport

Many people who can document that one of their grandparents was an Irish citizen, can apply for Irish citzenship via entry in the Register of Foreign Births, and then apply for an Irish passport. Children of those foreign-born Irish citizens with Irish grandparents are eligible too, as long as the child was born after the parent's citizenship was recorded by an Irish Consulate.

Before applying, I investigated and verified that Ireland had no military draft law and did not tax citizens living abroad, thereby making it safe to proceed. What were the advantages beyond maintaining a link to our ancestral homeland being a conversation piece? The idea of having an EU passport that allowed me to travel and work in the, now 27, nations of the EU without having to hassle with visas and work permits that are usually required to travel, live or work in a foreign nation was appealing. Also, being familiar with the bloody history of the 20th century as well as having worked in both aviation and IT, two areas where backup systems are standard operating procedure, I felt that a costless backup citizenship might make sense for my descendants. The biggest reason was probably the potential advantages it would offer to my children and me in the global economy which, even then was the apparent trend for the future.

U.S. citizens can become dual citizens as long as the alternate citizenship is granted after their U.S. citizenship, as the U.S. citizenship process requires an applicant to renounce all other citizenships. Ireland, by contrast, does not require an applicant to renounce other citizenships.

Check your assets every year

The San Francisco Chronicle on "unclaimed assets" seized under California state law, unbeknownst to its owners:

Years ago, Carla Ruff stored her grandmother's jewelry and a file of personal documents in a safe-deposit box at her bank in San Francisco's Noe Valley, thinking they would always be there when she wanted them.

Not so. Without giving her notice or acting on evidence that she'd forgotten about her cache, the bank's staff, under the auspice of the state, determined the contents of her box to be unclaimed property.

In July 1997, bank records show, the pearl necklace and diamond-encrusted pin, real estate and insurance documents as well as her birth certificate were all removed. The paperwork was shredded and thrown away. Her jewelry was auctioned off on eBay -- for a fraction of its $80,000 value.

Ruff said she didn't know what had happened until January 2006, when an illness in the family sent her to the Bank of America branch looking for the deed to her house. Weeks later, the bank manager told Ruff that her property had been seized by the state under a law that requires the government to take control of lost or abandoned assets.

Elaborate privacy arrangements can discourage us from checking up on our assets as frequently as we should. Sometimes it's difficult to verify financial arrangements while maintaining strict privacy procedures such as mail drops, or depositing cash into accounts in person in lieu of automated transfers (to avoid creating a paper trail linking the accounts together through the transaction).

Nonetheless, it behooves anyone with assets held by an outside institution or with agreements with business associates to check their status occasionally. It's something we should plan for when setting up privacy arrangements:

• U.S. Post Office box fees can usually only be paid a year in advance -- a renewal notice should come 30 days before payment is due.
  
• Safe deposit boxes should be visisted at least yearly.
  
• Financial accounts should be checked monthly for evidence of unauthorized access or identity theft.
  
• Many types of insurance contracts must be renewed yearly.
  
• LLC costs may be due after the first three years depending on provider.
  
• Trusts and attorneys should be contacted yearly or more frequently.
  
• Financial accounts with tax implications must be verified at the required tax intervals.