It costs just R14,000 to buy all your personal details from the dark web

·20 Apr 2018

With the news that over 90,000 South Africans were comprised as part of Facebook’s Cambridge Analytical scandal, private security has once again been thrust into the spotlight.

However, its not just your personal information and bank accounts which are up for grabs, and thousands of buyers are willing to snap up everything – from your Uber account to your Netflix password.

This is according to a new report by Privacy Central, which found that your entire online identity is worth around $1,200 (R14,349) on the dark web.

The report is based on tens of thousands of listings on three of the most popular dark web markets, Dream, Point and Wall Street Market.

These encrypted websites, which can only be reached using the Tor browser, allow criminals to anonymously sell stolen personal info, along with all sorts of other contraband, such as illicit drugs and weapons.

Notably, the report found that some accounts are worth more than others, with online shopping accounts such as Amazon and eBay considered some of the the most valuable at around $164.65 (R1,959) an account. In contrast, hackers are selling email accounts from Yahoo and Gmail from as little as $9.53 (R113.89).

Hacked financial details are by far the most commonly listed items, and credit cards in particular are the most valuable, the report found.

“Selling prices tend to be 10% of the available credit balance; however, we found credible examples of Paypal listings asking double that, suggesting high current demand for these accounts.

“A popular type of listing here is what are known as ‘Fullz’. These bundles of ‘full’ identifying information, sometimes are either packaged with financial details or sold separately. We found listings featuring individuals’ name, billing address, mother’s maiden name, social security number, date of birth and other personal data,” the report found.