Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released its annual report on consumer complaints about fraud and identity theft in 2005. Atop the list were complaints about ID theft, accounting for roughly 255,000, or 37 percent, of the total 686,683 complaints filed last year. Complaints are filed by phone or online, and are shared via a secure database with more than 1,400 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, and with law enforcement officials in Canada and Australia.“With a call or a click, consumers can file complaints with law enforcers across the country and around the world,” said Deborah Majoras Platt, Chairwoman of the FTC.Other top categories of fraud complaints in 2005 include Internet Auctions, Foreign Money Offers, Shop-at-Home/Catalog Sales and Sweepstakes/Lotteries, among others. Additional findings:Internet-related complaints accounted for 46 percent of all fraud complaints.The major metropolitan areas with the highest per capita rates of consumer fraud were Washington, D.C.; Tampa/St. Petersburg/Clearwater, Fla.; and Seattle Washington.The most frequently reported form of ID theft bank fraud was electronic funds transfer.For more, read the FTC’s January 25 release. -Al Sacco Related content brandpost Unmasking ransomware threat clusters: Why it matters to defenders Similar patterns of behavior among ransomware treat groups can help security teams better understand and prepare for attacks By Joan Goodchild Sep 21, 2023 3 mins Cybercrime news analysis China’s offensive cyber operations support “soft power” agenda in Africa Researchers track Chinese cyber espionage intrusions targeting African industrial sectors. By Michael Hill Sep 21, 2023 5 mins Advanced Persistent Threats Cyberattacks Critical Infrastructure brandpost Proactive OT security requires visibility + prevention You cannot protect your operation by simply watching and waiting. It is essential to have a defense-in-depth approach. By Austen Byers Sep 21, 2023 4 mins Security news Gitlab fixes bug that exploited internal policies to trigger hostile pipelines It was possible for an attacker to run pipelines as an arbitrary user via scheduled security scan policies. By Shweta Sharma Sep 21, 2023 3 mins Vulnerabilities Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe