Commentary

Dark Web Fire Sale: Prices Are Going Down For Personal Information

Inflation may prevail in most other parts of the economy -- but not on the Dark Web. There, prices are going down, according to the Dark Web Price Index 2022, a study by Privacy Affairs. 

For instance, credit card details for accounts with balances of up to $5,000 are now $120, down from $240 in 2021.

Even more dramatically, Paypal transfers from stolen accounts with $1,000-$5,000 balances are now priced at $45, versus $340 last year. But there is an exception: stolen Paypal details with no balance have leaped from $14—to $15. 

Why these price declines? Quite simply, oversupply: There are now more than 9,000 active vendors selling fake IDs and credit cards. Last December alone, roughly 4.5 million credit cards went up for sale on the Dark Web at prices price ranging from $1-$20.

And, in a new development, crypto accounts are also being offered at bargain-basement rates. Kraken accounts have gone from an average price of $810 to $250. 

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Blockchain.com verified accounts now run at $90, compared to $310 in 2021.

In general, identity thieves can obtain a complete workup on a person for $1,115, enabling them to create fake IDs and forge private documents like passports and driver’s licenses.

Scam artists can also  buy full credit card details, including card number, CVV number, dates and even the email, physical address and phone number, says Privacy Affairs CEO Miklos Zoltan. 

Speaking of emails, cyber criminals of all types can access 10 million USA Today addresses on the dark web for $120.  

In addition, they can leverage 600,000 New Zealand emails and 2.4 million Canada addresses for similarly low prices. 

Want more? You can obtain hacked Facebook accounts for $45 apiece, clothed VISAs with PIN for $20 and online banking login information for $45. Moreover, malefactors can obtain a hacked one-year subscription to Netflix for $25, and an HBO account for $40. A hacked Uber account costs only $15. 

Zoltan concludes: "While we are increasingly living in a digital world, resulting in greater opportunities for ID theft and other cybercrimes, everyone should be taking more precautions when sharing their data online."

 

 

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