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‘You should know, whether you live in the US or UK, that your identity has already been stolen,’ says Frank Abagnale, 1960s criminal mastermind

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By Nesh Pillay | Reporter

April 6, 2015 | 2 min read

According to 1960s criminal mastermind, Frank Abagnale, almost everybody in the western world has already had his or her personal information compromised, The Times wrote today.

Abagnale, 66, gained infamy in his younger years, when he committed multiple frauds, posing as a doctor, pilot, lawyer, and professor. He was jailed and has since advised the FBI on fraudulent matters. Abagnale’s hijinks ultimately inspired the Spielberg film ‘Catch me if you can.’

“We live in a too-much-information world,” he told The Times. “You should know, whether you live in the US or in the UK, that your identity has already been stolen.”

Abagnale referred to a recent incident where the personal information of 80 million Americans was compromised after Anthem Insurance’s data was breached. Just a few of these incidents could put every single American at risk, he said.

He added that many hackers will hold on to this type of information for many years before acting upon it.

However, all hope isn’t lost. Abagnale said that it is possible for businesses to stay protected.

“You fight technology with technology so you have to stay one step ahead of the criminal,” he said. “It’s very much a chess game — they make a move, you have to make a move.”

Still he added, the vast majority of security breaches occur when an employee is negligent --downloading work files at home or opening unknown e-mail attachments--and are not orchestrated by criminal masterminds.

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