Capital One advises caution over unused online registrations in the fight to combat identity theft
 

Capital One is today launching an appeal to internet users across the UK to protect themselves against identity theft by performing a clean up of all unused and unwanted online registrations. They are advised to check which accounts they still use and cancel those that they don't. The appeal comes after research, commissioned by Capital One, revealed that in the UK alone, there are over 296 million unused and uncancelled registrations, accounts and subscriptions languishing on the world wide web - that's over 9 accounts for each adult internet user in the UK.

Many online registrations and accounts require personal information such as names, addresses, dates of birth and telephone numbers, which could be used by fraudsters to steal identities.
 

On average, the services that have been set up - but forgotten - by internet users in the UK - include:
 

• accounts on social networking sites
• online subscriptions to magazines and newsletters
• registrations to shopping or auction sites
• registrations to online services such as estate agents or wedding sites
• email accounts
• subscriptions to listings and venue newsletters
• accounts on photo sharing sites
• online dating site accounts
   

Reasons why subscriptions remain open

In total, over 4.7 million internet users have no idea how many online services they have signed up for. Two thirds admitted to not actively closing down registrations that they no longer use, and a third claim that they found the process 'difficult'. However, the main reason given for not closing accounts was that the user had 'become bored and was no longer interested in that particular activity' (35%). Over a quarter of respondents had simply 'forgotten' about the account and 25% had moved on to other sites without cancelling original registrations.
 

Forgotten for years

In some cases, these online registrations and accounts have remained unused and unchecked for up to two years (18%). The research also shows that there are around 450,000 internet users with at least one online account that has remained open but unused for 10 years or over.

Srini Gopalan, Head of Capital One in the UK commented, 'The internet offers so many useful services, enabling us to stay in touch, go shopping and share information, that it's easy to get carried away. Users can lose track of the information given out online and that's when they run the risk of their personal information falling into the hands of identity fraudsters.'

He added, 'The safest way to interact online is to reduce the amount of unnecessary personal data held and this means deleting registrations that you no longer use. We'd also recommend keeping an eye on your credit file, so you can spot when your details have been used.'
 

Let's not make it easy for identity fraudsters

Professor Martin Gill, Director of Perpetuity a spin-out company from the University of Leicester added, 'By obtaining somebody's personal details an identity fraudster can apply for credit cards, loans and other financial products in that person's name, and they may not find out for ages. The troubling thing is that fraudsters say that it is easy, and we can all play a part - by looking after our personal details - in making it more difficult for offenders. '

Yet, whilst half of those questioned claimed to be concerned about possible security risks, nearly 40% claimed that they simply didn't care if their details were stored all over the world wide web, potentially exposing themselves to identify theft, unsolicited spam and targeting by fraudsters.
 

Capital One's free Identity Alert service

The Capital One Identity Alert service, the first of its kind to be offered free in the UK, provides an early warning system for Capital One cardholders that will alert them by email to any key changes on their credit file. The alert includes details of any applications for credit that may have been made with or without their knowledge. They also receive two free credit reports each year. The service, provided by Equifax, one of the UK's leading credit reference agencies, is free and available to all Capital One customers - all they need to do is register online.

The new Identity Alert service adds to Capital One's existing security measures - including offering advice to help prevent, spot and resolve identity theft and a named adviser to provide confidential help at every stage of the resolution process if a cardholder discovers they have been a victim of ID Theft.
 

For further details, please contact:

Jess Tozer / Nicki Akers
Fishburn Hedges
0207 492 0977

* Research conducted by ICM of a representative sample of 2052 UK adults between May 16th - 18th.
 

Notes to Editors

About Capital One:

Capital One Financial Corporation trades on the New York Stock Exchange. In 1996 Capital One launched its first overseas operation in the UK offering credit cards, savings and loan products to UK customers. The UK Operations Centre for Capital One Bank (Europe) plc is located in Nottingham, where more than 2,000 Associates are based. Capital One is a top-ten credit card issuer in both the USA and the UK, with more than four million UK customers. Capital One's subsidiaries collectively have approximately 50 million managed accounts and $151 billion in managed loans. The Bank has won numerous industry awards for its products and services as well as accolades for its consistent work within the communities in which it operates.

Capital One has consistently provided market-leading consumer-lending products to its customers. In the UK Capital One was among the first credit card issuers to offer a 0% introductory purchase rate, combining this with one of the lowest 'go-to' rates on the market. Capital One is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.