Kroll Fraud Solutions Blog – A Dialogue on Data Security

Young adults often make poor choices when it comes to social networking; so, many people argue that the younger generation simply doesn’t care about their own privacy. However, a recent survey refutes that argument – entitled How Different are Young Adults from Older Adults When it Comes to Information Privacy Attitudes and Policies?, it reveals little evidence that young adults’ attitudes toward privacy are fundamentally different from those of older adults. What the data did show, however, was that a higher proportion of 18-24 year olds believe (incorrectly) that information privacy laws protect their data both online and offline than do other age groups.

Planning on launching that new corporate social media initiative this year? While this has the potential to be a boon opportunity for many companies, it is important to remember that it opens up new and dangerous avenues for fraudsters to siphon sensitive PII and UBI. Any employees involved in directly engaging customers through social media outlets must be trained to recognize and avoid potential scams and to never divulge information such as passwords, logins, or the like. Outlining in the company’s social media policy – specifically what types of PII or UBI can and cannot be divulged – will also help employees understand the parameters of this new communications channel.