Latest news with #identitytheft
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Workplace raids demonstrate the vulnerability of the E-Verify system, experts say
Omaha, Nebraska — Gary Rohwer built his QuickSteak empire at a meat processing center in Omaha, Nebraska. But then, a tactical team of federal agents raided his facility on June 10, and more than 70 of his assembly line employees were arrested by Homeland Security Investigations. He showed CBS News an old company photo, disclosing that about half of the employees in that photo were swept up in the raid. "Oh my God, half of them," Rohwer said. "It makes me sad, it really does, because these guys made us successful." Rohwer said he put his faith in E-Verify — the federal system used by more than 1 million employers each year, and which is mandatory in 10 states and by most federal contractors — to confirm the employment eligibility of would-be hires. "We did everything right, but yet we got penalized big, I mean, big-time," Rohwer government tells employers like Rohwer that E-Verify provides "peace of mind." To green-light employees, the system matches documents, such as licenses and Social Security cards, to a U.S. government database of eligible workers. But it vets paperwork, not people. Experts say the E-Verify system is broken, not only exposing employers like Rohwer to raids, but also increasing an all too common crime: identity theft."This is a nationwide problem," Elhrick Cerdan, assistant special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations Omaha, who led the investigation into Gary's QuickSteak, told CBS News. Cerdan called Rohwer and his business victims. "This was in fact a targeted criminal investigation to rescue over a hundred victims of stolen entities," Cerdan said, emphasizing that this was a criminal investigation, not civil immigration enforcement. "Everybody is the victim of this broken system," Alex Nowrasteh, vice president for economic and social policy studies for the Libertarian Cato Institute, told CBS News. Nowrasteh called E-Verify a "wink-and-nod" system. "The thing that experts know that is sort of a dirty little secret, is E-Verify is a very easy-to-fool program," Nowrasteh said. He added that part of its appeal is that it doesn't work. "It allows politicians to talk tough about illegal immigration without actually imposing enormous costs on the U.S. economy," Nowrasteh said. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services spokesperson Matthew J. Tragesser told CBS News in a statement that "E-Verify consistently receives high marks from users and maintains a nearly perfect accuracy rate, while requiring no special software or additional costs to employers." "In recent months, staff at USCIS have taken an aggressive approach in concert with the Social Security Administration to systematically block E-Verify from automatically accepting SSNs that are known to have been used fraudulently," Tragesser went on. "E-Verify supports employers, but it does not take the place of their legal responsibility to ensure employee-presented documentation reasonably appears to be genuine and relates to the person presenting it." Son of man who was violently detained by ICE reacts after release Mike Johnson breaks from Trump, calls on DOJ to release Epstein files 7.3 magnitude earthquake hits southern Alaska Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Broadway bargoer robbed at gunpoint by fake rideshare drivers
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A man was defrauded of thousands of dollars after he was robbed at gunpoint by two women who allegedly impersonated a rideshare service. According to court documents, on March 30, 2025, the man left a bar on Broadway and got into a vehicle that he believed to be a rideshare vehicle or taxi. Inside the vehicle were 31-year-old Dakota Blunt and another woman. Tennessee bill to make impersonating rideshare, taxi drivers a crime gains bipartisan support The man told authorities that after the car left the Broadway area, one suspect pulled out a gun and demanded his wallet and phone. The suspects then left the victim and fled with his belongings. During the investigation, it was discovered that a new credit card was opened in the victim's name without his knowledge and approximately $18,000 was fraudulently charged to his bank accounts. ⏩ Surveillance footage from the locations where the fraudulent charges were made were used to identify Blunt and the other individual. No information was released about the status of the second person accused in the case. Blunt was charged with felony identity theft, felony property theft, felony aggravated robbery and felony aggravated kidnapping. Her bond is set at $235,000. 📲 Download the News 2 app to stay updated on the go.📧 Sign up for WKRN email alerts to have breaking news sent to your inbox.💻 for Nashville, TN and all of Middle Tennessee. This is a developing story. WKRN News 2 will continue to update this article as new information becomes available. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
8 hours ago
- CBS News
Workplace raids demonstrate the vulnerability of the federal E-Verify system, experts say
Omaha, Nebraska — Gary Rohwer built his Quicksteak empire at a meat processing center in Omaha, Nebraska. But then, a tactical team of federal agents raided his facility on June 10, and more than 70 of his assembly line employees were arrested by Homeland Security Investigations. He showed CBS News an old company photo, disclosing that about half of the employees in that photo were swept up in the raid. "Oh my God, half of them," Rohwer said. "It makes me sad, it really does, because these guys made us successful." Rohwer says he put his faith in E-Verify — the federal system used by more than one million employers each year, and which is mandatory in 10 states and by most federal contractors — to confirm the employment eligibility of would-be hires. "We did everything right, but yet we got penalized big, I mean, big time," Rohwer said. The government tells employers like Rohwer that E-Verify provides "peace of mind." To greenlight employees, the system matches documents, such as licenses and Social Security cards, to a U.S. government database of eligible workers. But it vets paperwork, not people. Experts say that the E-Verify system is broken, not only exposing employers like Rohwer to raids, but also increasing an all too common crime, identity theft. "This is a nationwide problem," Elhrick Cerdan, assistant special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations Omaha, who led the investigation into Gary's Quicksteak, told CBS News. Cerdan calls Rohwer and his business victims. "This was in fact a targeted criminal investigation to rescue over a hundred victims of stolen entities," Cerdan said, emphasizing that this was a criminal investigation, not civil immigration enforcement. "Everybody is the victim of this broken system," Alex Nowrasteh, vice president for economic and social policy studies for the Libertarian Cato Institute, told CBS News. Nowrasteh calls E-Verify a "wink-and-nod" system. "The thing that experts know that is sort of a dirty little secret, is E-Verify is a very easy to fool program," Nowrasteh said. He adds that part of its appeal is that it doesn't work. "It allows politicians to talk tough about illegal immigration without actually imposing enormous costs on the U.S. economy," Nowrasteh said. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services spokesperson Matthew J. Tragesser told CBS News in a statement that "E-Verify consistently receives high marks from users and maintains a nearly perfect accuracy rate, while requiring no special software or additional costs to employers." "In recent months, staff at USCIS have taken an aggressive approach in concert with the Social Security Administration to systematically block E-Verify from automatically accepting SSNs that are known to have been used fraudulently," Tragesser went on. "E-Verify supports employers, but it does not take the place of their legal responsibility to ensure employee-presented documentation reasonably appears to be genuine and relates to the person presenting it."
CNET
14 hours ago
- Business
- CNET
New Research Shows Data Breaches Keep Coming. Here's How To Protect Yourself
The personal data of Americans continues to be under threat from cybercriminals looking to steal it for their own financial gain, according to a new report from the Identity Theft Resource Center. For the first six months of this year, there were 1,732 data compromises reported that resulted in 165.7 million victim notifications, the non-profit group focused on helping victims of identity theft said Wednesday. The number of reported compromises represents an 11% increase from the same six months in 2024 when there were 1,567 reported compromises. Of the most recent period's total, 1,348 stemmed from data breaches resulting from cyberattacks, far outpacing other causes like phishing attacks, ransomware and computer viruses. The ITRC says the numbers don't include previously compromised data such as logins and passwords that were repackaged then posted online for sharing or sale during the period, noting that they don't constitute a new threat against companies or consumers, just a continuation of one that already existed. That's still a "serious risk" for businesses, because much of the data is logins and passwords, James Lee, the group's president, said in a statement. "But it also means individuals need to take steps to protect themselves from identity fraud and scams." The total for the first half of this year also represented 59% of the 3,155 compromises reported for all of 2024, but the number of people potentially affected represented just 12% of the year-ago total. The ITRC says that while breaches have continued, there haven't been the same kinds of mega breaches affecting hundreds of millions of people that there were last year, resulting in the drop. The financial services and healthcare industries, known for their vast repositories of personal and financial consumer data, continued to be the most targeted sectors in the first half of 2025, accounting for 387 and 283 compromises, respectively. That might seem daunting, given that there's not a whole lot consumers can do if their personal data is exposed in one of these corporate data breaches, but there are a few things you can do to mitigate the damage if you do get caught up. Here are a few tips from CNET and the ITRC. How to protect your data Set great passwords and always use MFA. All of your passwords should be long, complex and unique. Need help? Try a password manager or look into setting up passkeys. Don't be tempted to recycle old passwords even if they're great. And if one of your passwords is compromised in a breach, change it right away. It should also go without saying that enabling multi-factor authentication is a must whenever it's available. It'll help protect you in the event that your password is compromised. Be on the lookout for phishing. Data breaches that expose your email and other personal details give cybercriminals the material they need to craft successful scam texts, emails, social media messages and even phone calls. And now they have artificial intelligence tools to make them all the more convincing. Be skeptical of any kind of unsolicited communications and don't hand over any personal information or money to people or companies you haven't vetted to be legitimate. Keep an eye on your financial accounts. If you know your personal information has been caught up in a breach, keep a close eye on your bank accounts and credit card statements. Set up account alerts to inform you right away if a big transaction takes place. Freeze your credit. If you're worried you might be at risk of identity theft or fraud, freeze your credit with all the major credit bureaus. It's not as big of a pain as you might think. That way, cybercriminals won't be able to use your personal information to do things like get a credit card or take out a loan.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Guardian
What to do if your driving licence is either lost or stolen
Mislaying your driving licence, or having it stolen, can be a real hassle and leave you vulnerable to fraud, so it is important to act quickly to protect your personal information. Contact your local police station or call 101 to report a stolen full or provisional licence. They will then give you a crime reference number. This can be important if your licence is used for fraudulent activity later on. If you've misplaced it, this isn't a necessary step, but can be a good idea if you think there's a chance it might have been stolen. Apply for a replacement licence through the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) website if you are in England, Scotland and Wales (or the DVA in Northern Ireland), or by phone and post. If you are applying by post, you will need to complete and send the D1 application for a driving licence form, which is available from most post offices. You can also apply by phone, but only if you have a photocard driving licence and none of your details have changed. A new licence costs £20. Keep an eye on your bank accounts for any suspicious activity, just in case your licence is being used for identity theft. It is a good idea to notify your bank, too, so they can flag any suspicious activity. Consider getting identity theft protection if you are worried about fraud. These services monitor your credit for any unusual activity. You can apply for protective registration with Cifas, the UK's fraud prevention service – this costs £30 for two years. Experian's Identity Plus offers a similar service – it's free for 30 days and £10.99 a month after. In the UK you are allowed to drive while you wait for a new licence to arrive. Once you have reported the theft or loss, and completed an application for a replacement licence, you should receive a new one within a week. Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself in future: Make a record of your new driving licence number – it's the unique 16-character code that can be found underneath the licence's expiry date. Keep it in a secure place, to avoid losing it, or having it stolen again. If the police pull you over while driving, you're allowed up to a week to take your licence into your local police station, so you don't need to carry it on you at all times. Set up alerts for your bank accounts to stay ahead of any large or unusual transactions, and be extra cautious with your personal details in the future. If you find your old licence after you've applied for, or received, a new one, you need to return it to the DVLA with a note explaining what has happened. You can find the address on the website.
