US identity fraudster jailed for seven years

US authorities have sentenced a man to seven years in prison for buying stolen identities from cyber-criminals in other countries.

Jacob Vincent Green-Bressler was convicted of soliciting information including credit and debit card account numbers, Pins, expiration dates, passwords and social security numbers.

The 21 year-old created counterfeit credit cards to take more than $1m from cash machines in Arizona, including one withdrawal of $148,000 at the Casino Del Sol.

At the height of the scam, it is estimated that Green-Bressler held more than 4,500 illegal credit and debit card account numbers and Pins and that more than $300,000 was transferred overseas.

Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, said that law enforcement agencies have traditionally focused on catching the cyber-criminals who sell identities online.

But he warned that more action needs to be taken to stop the criminals who buy and use this information.

"Tackling the identity theft problem is not just about stopping the suppliers because there are always more cyber-criminals lurking out there ready to step into their shoes," Cluley said.

"It is just as important that anyone buying this information does not think that they can get away scot-free."

See also:

Web scams trick one in five US surfers

Victims admit to compromising their own security  16 Aug 2007

US curriculum to include online safety

Schools must educate students on cyber-threats  16 Aug 2007

Poor company policy aids identity theft

Too much reliance on paper-based authentication  13 Aug 2007

Biotesting Europe project aims to cut ID theft

UK scientists from NPL join scheme  13 Aug 2007

Education and coordination required to combat cyber crime

House of Lords report sparks security debate  10 Aug 2007

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