ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J.—Payment card information is dropping down on cyber crooks’ priority list, while data from Uber and Netflix accounts is moving up.
One reason that is happening, experts say, is that FIs are now better at detecting fraud and quickly render stolen card data useless.
Evidence of this shifting criminal interest is found in the prices stolen Uber, PayPal and even Netflix accounts fetch on the “dark web,” compared to the prices for payment card data, CNBC reported.
Uber account information on underground marketplaces sells for an average of $3.78 per account, whilepersonally identifiable information (PII) was listed for $1 to $3.30 on average, down from $4 per record in 2014, according to data compiled by Trend Micro for CNBC. PII includes any information that can be used to commit identity fraud, like Social Security numbers or date of birth and varies in price depending on the specific information for sale.
CNBC explained that Trend Micro found the following accounts for sale at the following average prices per account: PayPal — with a guaranteed $500 balance ($6.43), Facebook ($3.02), Google Voice (97 cents) and Netflix (76 cents). By contrast, U.S.-issued credit card credentials, sold in bundles, were listed for no more than 22 cents each.
While it might not seem logical that a stolen Uber account would demand more money than credit card data, criminals can use Uber data to build a fuller picture of a victim for identity theft, or they can be used to charge phantom rides, experts told CNBC. A phantom ride is when a criminal sets up a fake driver account, and charges nonexistent rides to stolen accounts.
The reason why credit cards are worth less to crooks at this point is because banks and credit card issuers have developed more sophisticated fraud detection systems, rending stolen cards worthless very quickly, Forrester told CNBC.
Bill Hardekopf, CEO of Lowcards.com, Birmingham, Ala., thinks that as the U.S. issuers migrate more cards to EMV, this trend will become stronger—but is little reason for anyone to worry less.
“Despite this decline in the value of a stolen credit card number, it remains very important for consumers to guard their information and use their credit card securely,” said Hardekopf. “If your card information is stolen, it can cause substantial headaches for you, no matter what price the criminal may have paid for it."