The recent data breach at online merchant FabFitFun is a perfect example of how simple ‘card breaches’ create risk beyond simple ‘card transactions’. Even as a card breach, this one was unusual because the 3 or 4 digit secret code that is printed on the card was exposed, making the card data primed for online card fraud. Importantly, even when a cardholder is issued a new payment card by the bank or credit union, the cardholder can be left with lingering risks beyond simple card fraud. What’s missing today is a method for finding, assessing, and communicating these risks, so everyone can be on ..read more

(SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – June 22, 2020) – The call of industry experts for stronger consumer protection from identity crime risks created by data breaches grew today, with the addition of identity theft and data breach risk management expert Mark Pribish to the Breach Clarity board of advisors. Breach Clarity developed a proprietary algorithm to deeply analyze data breaches, predict individual consumers’ specific risks and prescribe their most effective action steps.   Mark Pribish Vice President & ID Theft Practice Leader | Merchants Information Solutions   Pribish brings 30 ..read more

Two things are happening right now that make people especially vulnerable to cyber threats.     1. Cybercriminals are taking advantage of new vulnerabilities created by remote work and other COVID-19-created circumstances to target and extract valuable personal data.   2. The pandemic, coupled with unrest over racism and societal injustice, has created uncertainly and fear. When emotions are high, humans act less rationally, or carefully, making them extra susceptible to scams.   COVID-19 scams take many shapes. The IRS, for instance, has urged Americans to be extra care ..read more

Machine-learning algorithm predicts most likely cybercriminal behavior in response to new caches of private data on the dark web     (SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – May 29, 2020) – Amid widespread predictions that COVID-19 will generate a wave of financial and identity crime, Breach Clarity today released analysis of recent data breaches that identifies risk for COVID-19 scams. The San Francisco fraud prevention and detection technology firm used its proprietary algorithm to analyze more than 1,000 elements of these five data breaches to produce their respective risk ratings.   “Any ..read more

A cybercriminal’s work is never done (just ask Lady Gaga), and those looking to capitalize on the opportunities created by COVID-19 have been particularly busy devising ransomware attacks, specifically. Already a growing trend, a sharp uptick in the first quarter of 2020 shows bad actors are using the increasingly popular vector to take advantage of newly exposed weaknesses among victim organizations.     The healthcare industry, under immense strain from the pandemic, seems to be a favorite target. Take the recent ransom attack on Magellan Health, for example.   A record num ..read more

Technology and cybercrime pros add to the diverse set of thought leaders helping to bring a new category of fraud prevention products to market   (SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – April 22, 2020) – Two financial services experts have joined the advisory board of fraud prevention and detection technology firm Breach Clarity. David Eads and Ben Wallach bring versatile and experienced perspective to a growing dialogue around the need for new strategies to combat threats posed by mounting data breaches.   This month, Eads and Wallach will join the now seven-member board, which is charged with g ..read more

Though the fast-moving COVID-19 pandemic caught the world by surprise, there is something ahead that our years as fraud researchers and security analysts allow us to see coming. There will undoubtedly be a wave of financial crime that follows COVID-19 for years after the public health emergency fades.   New government relief programs, rushed transitions to remote work, and tenuous at-home security practices form a trifecta of risk that enterprising cybercriminals will unquestioningly capitalize on – leaving a wake of devastation for millions of consumers and their financial institutions ..read more

Technology Firm Intends to Help FIs Support Increasingly Vulnerable Customers   (SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – April 2, 2020) – If a global pandemic and drastically weakened economy weren’t enough stress for financial consumers, an anticipated long tail of resulting financial crime has begun to emerge. In response, fraud prevention and detection technology firm Breach Clarity is waiving per-user costs for its product, Breach Clarity Premium for Financial Services, free to financial institutions (FIs) for six months.   Cybercriminals have already begun phishing fearful consumers under the guise of ..read more

As the New York Times *(and numerous other sources) have written about the Equifax data breach, the state-sponsored affiliation of hackers screams risks associated with individuals who work for the CIA, military, or other key government positions. The belief is this: the more private data that rivals foreign powers have about US individuals in key positions of power, the more leverage these ‘unfriendlies’ have to potentially use against them. While certainly true, we cannot avoid the fact that even breaches stemming from unfriendly soil (also including Anthem, OPM, Yahoo! and more) continue to ..read more

American Banker’s Miriam Cross published a very strong and concise article on us that got our value proposition right, which is never easy to do for an all new service like ours. Because American Banker’s content is subject to copyright I’m not at liberty to post it, yet bankers and many fintechs reading this should have existing access. I’ll simply summarize or even expand Miriam’s solid article based on her interview of me.  -FInancial institutions rarely get breached–and when they do, the breaches generally are less damaging. The great majority of breaches happen at non-financial entities ..read more