As massive data breaches increase, the ability to contain the leaking of personal data in the deep web declines. To assist with this, Google has announced that consumer account holders will be able to get free dark web monitoring beginning at the end of this month. This new service will notify a user each time a user’s data is ending up in the dark-web databases like credit card numbers, address or any phone number and/or any email address.
What is a dark web?
The dark web is a section of the World Wide Web that can only be accessed using specific software primarily for unlawful purposes. It is well known that it is a marketplace through which cyber criminals supply stolen data from attacks on websites, banking firms and healthcare facilities. Cybercriminals can buy personal data and forged documents for a range of prices. Knowing that your personal information is on the dark web is a crucial first step, but users must act on this knowledge. While Google can’t remove information from the dark web, alerts serve as a warning to change passwords and freeze credit to prevent identity theft.
This service will be available for all
Earlier, this service was available only for the Google One subscribers. Nevertheless, in a more recent development, the company stated that it planned to introduce this feature to all party’s users for free. To access the monitoring once it goes live, users will need to visit Google’s “Results about you” page. This page already allows users to sign up for alerts if their personal information appears in search results, providing an opportunity to remove that information in some cases (though Google cannot remove data from third-party sites). The dark web monitoring feature will be added to this page, with users receiving alerts via email or smartphone notifications.
The need for such precautions is underscored by the Identity Theft Resource Center’s (ITRC) 2023 report, which highlights a 118% increase in job scams through platforms like LinkedIn. Job scams were the second most common type of scam, while Google Voice scams remained the most prevalent, accounting for 60% of reported identity crimes. Despite fewer overall victims, the impact on individuals and businesses is significant, with more people reporting multiple identity-theft attempts.
Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of ITRC, noted that bad actors have become more effective and successful, resulting in fewer victims but greater damage. This highlights the importance of proactive measures like Google’s dark web monitoring to protect personal information in an increasingly perilous digital landscape.
