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  1. #1
    Site Sponsor ajg617's Avatar
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    T-Mobile/Sprint cyber breach gets real

    For those that have had T-Mobile and/or Sprint accounts, you may recall that T-Mobile was the subject of a massive cyber breach last August (at least that is when they announced it). I have never had a T-Mobile account, however I did have a Sprint account circa 2001. I was notified by T-Mobile of the breach.

    Because of all of the other breaches that have potentially compromised my credentials in the past, I monitor the dark web for key information. Today I received notice that my SSN and DoB were compromised and the source was T-Mobile. It was aligned with a Newark, NJ telephone number. Unfortunately, this information combined with a bogus address is sufficient to allow someone to sign up for a myriad of new accounts on-line that don't do proper credit checks.

    Having gone through identify theft 15 years ago, it is a royal pain to clear your name not to mention time consuming. To this day, I'm still listed as having lived in a state I've never been to and a big satellite streaming company will not let me sign up.

    Just providing for your awareness.
    Robin & John
    2020 Ram 3500 LB SRW 4WD Crew Laramie 6.7HO Aisin, 55gal Titan
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  2. #2
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    Yikes, that sounds like a big pain in the butt! Switched to TMobile a few months ago. No issues we're aware of so far. Never dealt with ID theft so far - fingers crossed...
    Chad
    2023 23LDE 965W Solar, Victron Multiplus, Solar Controllers, Cerbo GX, 4x280AH DIY Lithium Batteries, SeeLevel Tank Monitoring, Shock Absorbers (Replaced 2022 22MLE)
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  3. #3
    Rolling Along Spartacus's Avatar
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    Wow, and T-Mobile sent me an ad to get 4G in my truck just today.
    2022 GMC Denali Ultimate DRW
    2023 North Point 310RLTS
    MSG Retired Army

  4. #4
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    …”and all we need to get you set up is your DOB and SSN!” ��
    2022 Imagine XLS 22MLE
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  5. #5
    Seasoned Camper
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    Good of you to post the heads up!

    Around 22 years ago my wife had her wallet stolen. In it was her drivers license, social security card, credit cards, and ATM card. Somehow they got a new ATM card issued from her bank and withdrew over $2k, which for a young lady just out of college was everything she had and a fortune to her at the time. Dial the clock forward another 10+ months and she starts getting calls from creditors. They had set up multiple apartments in her name with tv, internet, utilities, etc. They moved or got kicked out after not having paid any of the bills. She had creditors chasing her constantly looking for rent and utilities. At the time identity theft wasn't as prevalent. They didn't have protection for the victim and no one was really willing to believe or help her. It was a total nightmare that took over 7 years to clear up. In the end she gave up fighting and paid off thousands of dollars associated to her name. It was a very hard lesson and we have been diligent in checking for credit activity ever since.
    Last edited by Timmer; 02-13-2022 at 05:39 AM.
    Timmer
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  6. #6
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    Anyone ever considered identity theft insurance? I think State Farm offers it but I know there are other offers out there too. Maybe even Discover?

    I never considered it, but after reading this thread it makes me wonder if they work and really do enough to make it worth the cost?
    Chad
    2023 23LDE 965W Solar, Victron Multiplus, Solar Controllers, Cerbo GX, 4x280AH DIY Lithium Batteries, SeeLevel Tank Monitoring, Shock Absorbers (Replaced 2022 22MLE)
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  7. #7
    Seasoned Camper DECelt's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Riverbug View Post
    Anyone ever considered identity theft insurance? I think State Farm offers it but I know there are other offers out there too. Maybe even Discover?

    I never considered it, but after reading this thread it makes me wonder if they work and really do enough to make it worth the cost?
    From experience...the very best thing that you can do is to lock down your three credit reporting accounts. This eliminates the vast majority of abuses. Also set notifications on your credit cards to notify you of every transaction and event. Set up two factor authentication for your sensitive on line accounts. Money is the motivation for most of these crimes...most people don't really want to be you for long.

    The, much rarer, type of attack is against your property. There are normally notification services available in your state/county deed registry that will notify you of any activity regarding property deeds.

    It also goes without saying that on line passwords should be unique and complex for every account. Buy yourself a password manager.

    Sent from my Pixel 6 using Tapatalk
    Last edited by DECelt; 02-13-2022 at 06:44 AM.
    DECelt
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  8. #8
    Site Sponsor ajg617's Avatar
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    ^ As @DECelt says^
    There were well over 9,000 breaches between 2006 and 2019 - not all containing the most vital personal information - but many did and in most cases the data stolen was unencrypted. And, those are only the ones made public. The last two years has seen some notably large increases.

    My ID theft occurred in 2009 to add to what @Timmer posted. It was a full-time job to try and clear my identity and get bogus default payment notices removed from all of the credit agencies. It took years. Even in 2009, no company wanted to believe me though I followed the existing rules, filed a police report, submitted a complaint to the FTC, put a freeze on all my credit reports (back then you had to pay to freeze and un-freeze and it prevented me from applying for credit while in force), and paid to subscribe to a credit monitoring service (and they only catch illicit activities after the fact).

    2FA is a huge asset. Passwords are critical but there are still many financial sites that will only allow letters and numerals or limit length (some of this for technical reasons - still using old mainframe systems where special characters had meaning to the OS). Freezing your credit reporting accounts can impact your ability to obtain credit in ways that you might not expect. And, as I found out, there are more than 3 credit bureaus (oh and at least two of the big three have also been compromised) - maybe half a dozen more to include LexisNexis for example. You can put a fraud alert on the accounts. Theoretically, this will show up on a credit pull and indicate to the company requesting the credit pull that they need to contact you first - it doesn't always work.
    Robin & John
    2020 Ram 3500 LB SRW 4WD Crew Laramie 6.7HO Aisin, 55gal Titan
    2022 Solitude 310GK-R - Dual pane, factory solar & Onan, 8K axles with discs, 18K GVWR, W/D, Heat Pump, Goosebox, Battleborn

    2023 stays

  9. #9
    Rolling Along Spartacus's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Timmer View Post
    Good of you to post the heads up!

    Around 22 years ago my wife had her wallet stolen. In it was her drivers license, social security card, credit cards, and ATM card. Somehow they got a new ATM card issued from her bank and withdrew over $2k, which for a young lady just out of college was everything she had and a fortune to her at the time. Dial the clock forward another 10+ months and she starts getting calls from creditors. They had set up multiple apartments in her name with tv, internet, utilities, etc. They moved or got kicked out after not having paid any of the bills. She had creditors chasing her constantly looking for rent and utilities. At the time identity theft wasn't as prevalent. They didn't have protection for the victim and no one was really willing to believe or help her. It was a total nightmare that took over 7 years to clear up. In the end she gave up fighting and paid off thousands of dollars associated to her name. It was a very hard lesson and we have been diligent in checking for credit activity ever since.
    Don't you just hate this, but there is a very special place for people like them but, in the meantime, it makes you sick.
    2022 GMC Denali Ultimate DRW
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