LAS VEGAS, Aug. 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, ID Experts announced public availability of its new free CyberScan™ dark web and social media scanning product. Unlike other free dark web offerings, CyberScan not only perpetually scans all levels of the dark web – surface, dark and deep – for the user and provides them with ongoing monitoring and protection, but it reaches a third more of the dark web than other services. It also includes ID Experts' innovative new SocialSentry™ privacy protection service for Facebook users. CyberScan is part of the ID Experts MyIDCare™ family of digital privacy and identity protection services currently relied upon by millions of Americans.
Users need only provide an email address for CyberScan to begin scanning the dark web for instances where that may have been compromised. The user can then add additional personally identifiable information (e.g., Social Security number, bank account) for CyberScan to look for on the surface, deep and dark web, as well as link their Facebook account in order to scan the social network for malicious and inappropriate content. ID Experts respects the privacy of its members and does not sell personal data to other parties.
"Consumers' privacy is constantly under attack, and their use of social media just opens new doors for malicious activity," commented ID Experts President and CEO Tom Kelly. "With each new breach, there's a compounding effect that nearly guarantees that actors with ill intent have more than enough detail on every one of us. Because consumers are at a heightened risk of harm, we decided to combine our dark web and Facebook privacy scanning solutions as one free offering to consumers."
The tool accesses a pool of 10 billion credentials and 500 million documents across over 100 thousand data breach incidents sourced from millions of different resources and thousands of hacker operations – and is always searching for more resources. Once identified, the product will also provide actionable advice within minutes to help address the risks associated with those compromises.
The Threat
The dark web is a region of the internet only accessible via an anonymous web browser. While used for many purposes, it is most commonly known for being a place for criminals to consolidate personal private information – such as online passwords, bank account numbers, Social Security, driver license and other identity information – and sell it. Enabled by whatever data a user provides to it, CyberScan uses a combination of technology that scans surface, deep and dark web, and social network content, along with the human intelligence of the subject matter experts who analyze and monitor chatter in Internet Relay Chats, semi-restricted forums and other dark web communication sites. By scanning the dark web, in conjunction with the Facebook network, ID Experts is better able to help consumers detect privacy issues before they become harmful.
According to recent reports, the median price for an aggregated identity on the dark web was about $1,200. Children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to these kinds of threats, the elderly because they frequently lack access to their online bank accounts to monitor activity and the young because parents often don't think to check on their child's financial activity. But even adults who are vigilant about their online activity can become victims: According to the 2019 Javelin Identity Fraud Report, 14.4 million Americans had their identities stolen in 2018.
Pricing and Availability
CyberScan, complete with Facebook scanning, is available now for free to consumers, both directly from ID Experts, and also through our partner channels. CyberScan can be accessed through the companion iOS and Android mobile apps. Employers, brokers and industry players interested in offering it to employees, customers or members should contact ID Experts.
To try CyberScan now, visit https://try.myidcare.com.
About ID Experts
ID Experts® is the leading pure-play data breach and identity protection services privacy technology company. MyIDCare™, its flagship digital privacy and identity protection product, is built on a secure, SaaS cloud-native platform that utilizes an agile delivery system. As the largest provider of identity protection services to the U.S. government and a trusted provider to Fortune 500-sized companies and millions of Americans, ID Experts delivers lasting peace of mind from privacy cyber risks.
SOURCE ID Experts