In the case of weak protection of personal information, criminals can find breakthroughs in a variety of ways to carry out identity theft, and then carry out illegal activities. The following are some common breakthroughs and methods： ### 1. **Data breach** -**Large-scale data breach**: Hackers attack companies, government agencies or social media platforms to obtain a large number of users' personal information, such as names, ID numbers, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, etc. -**Internal leakage**: Internal employees or third-party partners of the company intentionally or unintentionally disclose sensitive data. ### 2. **Phishing** -**Email phishing**: Criminals send emails disguised as legitimate institutions to trick users into clicking on malicious links or providing personal information. -**SMS Phishing (Smishing)**: Sending false information through SMS to trick users into providing personal information or clicking on malicious links. -**Social media phishing**: Pretending to be a trusted individual or organization on a social media platform to trick users into providing personal information. ### 3. **Malware** -**Keylogger**: Record the user's keyboard input through malicious software to obtain sensitive information such as passwords and credit card numbers. -**Spyware**: Collects personal information on users' devices without their knowledge. ### 4. **Social engineering** -**Pretending to be customer service**: Criminals pretend to be customer service personnel of banks, telecommunications companies and other institutions to obtain users' personal information through telephone or online chat. -**Impersonating acquaintances**: Impersonating the user's relatives and friends through social media or other channels to defraud personal information or funds. ### 5. **Public Wi-Fi** -**Insecure Public Wi-Fi**: When users use insecure Wi-Fi networks in public places, criminals can easily intercept their network traffic and obtain sensitive information. ### 6. **Spam and fraudulent calls** -**Spam**: By sending a large amount of spam, users are tricked into providing personal information or clicking on malicious links. -**Fraudulent phone calls**: Impersonate an authority or company over the phone to trick users into providing personal information or transferring money. ### 7. **Physical theft** -**Stealing wallets or mobile phones**: Criminals obtain personal information in ID cards, bank cards, and mobile phones by stealing wallets, mobile phones, etc. -**Dumpster Diving (Dumpster Diving)**: By rummaging through the trash can, get discarded bank statements, credit card bills and other documents containing personal information. ### 8. **Identity synthesis** -**Synthetic identity theft**: Criminals combine real information from different sources to create a new false identity for applying for loans, credit cards, etc. ### 9. **Dark Web transactions** -**Dark Web market**: Criminals purchase stolen personal information on the dark Web for further fraud or illegal activities. ### 10. **Use weak passwords** -**Weak password attack**: Criminals obtain account information by guessing or brute force cracking the user's weak password. ### 11. **Use of public information** -**Social media information**: Criminals use analysis of the information disclosed by users on social media to infer passwords, answers to security questions, etc. ### 12. **Fake website** -**Fake websites**: Criminals create fake websites similar to legitimate websites to trick users into entering personal information. ### 13. **Exploit vulnerabilities in third-party services** -**Vulnerabilities in third-party services**: Criminals use security vulnerabilities in third-party services (such as cloud storage and online payment platforms) to obtain users' personal information. ### 14. **Use social networks** -**Social network analysis**: Criminals use analysis of users' social network relationships to infer passwords, answers to security questions, etc. ### 15. **Use mobile applications** -**Malicious applications**: Criminals obtain users' personal information or device permissions by distributing malicious applications. ### 16. **Use IOT devices** -**Vulnerabilities in Internet of Things devices**: Criminals use security vulnerabilities in smart home devices, wearable devices, etc. to obtain users' personal information. ### 17. **Use cloud services** -**Cloud service vulnerabilities**: Criminals use vulnerabilities in cloud storage, cloud backup and other services to obtain users' personal information. ### 18. **Use email attachments** -**Malicious attachments**: Criminals obtain users' personal information by sending email attachments containing malicious software. ### 19. **Use social engineering** -**Social engineering attacks**: Criminals trick users into providing personal information by pretending to be a trusted individual or organization. ### 20. **Use of public records** -**Public records**: Criminals obtain users' personal information, such as real estate information, marital status, etc., by querying public records. ### Preventive measures In order to prevent identity theft, individuals and organizations can take the following measures： -**Strengthen password management**: Use strong passwords and change them regularly. -**Enable two-factor authentication**: Increase the security of your account. -**Handle personal information carefully**: Avoid entering personal information on untrusted websites or applications. -**Regularly monitor account activities**: Detect abnormal activities in a timely manner. -**Use security software**: Install and regularly update anti-virus software and firewalls. -**Improve security awareness**: Be wary of common fraud methods such as phishing and fraudulent telephone calls. By taking these measures, the risk of identity theft can be greatly reduced.