Conference focuses on fighting ID theft

Washington state ranks No. 7 nationwide in the per-capita cases of identity theft reported, state Attorney General Rob McKenna said Wednesday. It ranks eighth nationally for methamphetamine convictions.

“There’s no surprise that the two are closely linked. Wherever you find meth addicts, you find people likely to commit identity theft,” McKenna said at the start of a two-day cybersecurity conference in Spokane Valley.

Today’s sessions — at the Mirabeau Park Hotel — run from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with registration required.

About 110 people are attending the two-day conference, hosted by Washington State University and underwritten in part by Pullman-based Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories.

McKenna said the focus in Washington and nationwide is improving consumer education, along with stronger cooperation among law enforcement agencies in tracking down cyber criminals.

In the past two years his office has added two attorneys entirely focused on cyber crimes and misdeeds, he said. And he’s added a computer forensics expert to the office to help prosecute cases.

So far the effort has netted three successful civil settlements against firms that created spyware targeting Washington residents, said McKenna.

Also taking part as a presenter is Linda Criddle, a Microsoft manager who has written about protecting families from online predators.

During a morning press conference Wednesday, Criddle talked about the importance of parents and children undertaking smarter online activities.

“People I talk to say, ‘Oh, we’re careful. We don’t leave our personal information anywhere.’ Well, then I show them how much information is really out there,” said Criddle.

She added, “You don’t have to be a cyber-genius to exploit people.” Clever tracking of information, on bridal registry sites, social network sites like MySpace and on photo sharing sites can scoop up vast amounts of personal information.

What’s also revealing, she added, is that happier and more social people tend to leave far less personal information online. “People who are not that connected” or who are more isolated don’t spend a lot of time on sites that leave them exposed, Criddle said.

Also appearing today at the conference is Scott E. Jacobs, executive assistant director for combating terrorism of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Jacobs will describe the range of online attacks being directed against government agencies and the consuming public.

The NCIS is the agency portrayed in the current TV show bearing its name, “NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service.” The NCIS is primarily charged with investigating crimes against members of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.