Ashley Johnson, 24, of Memphis TN was recently arrested by local authorities when she attempted to open a Macy’s credit card account using another woman’s identity. This story starts out pretty simple and sounds like a normal case of identity theft, however, the details of how Ashley got to this point are quite amazing.
It all started when Ms. Johnson went dumpster diving back in December of 2008 to try and locate some moving boxes. She did not find any packing boxes in the dumpster behind McAlister’s Deli but what she did find proved to be much more valuable. The deli had recently tossed a stockpile of old applications (some from over 2 years ago) in the garbage and neglected to shred them before doing so. Ms. Johnson found these applications(hundreds of them) and this is where she was able to turn another person’s trash into her own treasure.
Ms. Johnson began applying for credit cards right away using the information from these applications. She was successful in obtaining over 100 credit cards. Once she received the credit cards, she would go on a shopping spree and purchase merchandise from multiple department stores. Once she had the merchandise, she would take it to other stores and receive store credit (gift cards) for the returned items. She would then sell these gift cards to people off the street for half the value. Authorities estimate that she laundered over $60,000 of merchandise in a 5 month period. (WOW! She certainly did not let grass grow under her feet.) Ms. Johnson’s favorite stores for this scheme were JCPenny, Target, and Macy’s. However, in order to keep up with her social network, she managed to get 4 Verizon phone accounts set up under different names as well.
Johnson is charged with identity theft, forgery and theft. She is being held on a $35,000 bond at Shelby County Jail East. There could be more charges in this case. The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office is working with Memphis Police and Bartlett Police. A full press release from the local Sheriff’s office can be found here.
We hope this story helps to educate and enlighten our readers at SmartSecurityPeople.com to always guard your private information. You never know when a “Ms. Johnson” will be dumpster diving in your area!
Spring is upon us and that means that summer is soon to follow. With the warmth of June comes the common annual event of planning a vacation. Many will be flocking to beaches while others will be holing up in their favorite mountain retreat. Regardless of what your vacation destination will be, it is important that you create a simple checklist of things around you can do around your home to ensure that you return to your home in the same manner in which you left it- safe and sound. Regardless of how long you will be away, it is important that your home has the “lived-in” look. Tell-tale signs that are sure to invite burglars are an overgrown lawn, no lights on at night, piled up newspapers or a full mailbox. The following tips should prove to be helpful in keeping your house off of the radar of potential burglars.
The process simply starts when you stumble upon an email, online ad, or website that says you are eligible for an economic stimulus payment. The message looks like it may be from a rebate company or possibly even straight from the Internal Revenue Service (I.R.S.). When you click through their provided information, they confirm your eligibility and guarantee you a payment but you first have to submit a small fee to them to cover the processing of your funds. The moment you send them the funds it will be the last you hear from them and you will never see your money again.
Robert Gibbs was a welcome relief after our jaunt with Chuck Todd. Mr. Gibbs was much more on task and prepared for our every question. We asked him about the recent virus attack on the White House and he quickly acknowledged it by stating,”we are aware of the virus and every precaution necessary is being taken to keep it at bey”. Mr. Gibbs continued to state that containment of the virus has been quite challenging because it has managed to find a way to infect the majority of the White House campus and it’s staffers. We at SmartSecurityPeople.com were quite shocked that Mr. Gibbs was answering our questions so freely and without reservation. For once we felt like we were getting an honest answer to an honest question. Much unlike the press briefings that we experience on a regular basis. With this great feeling of open dialogue and unfiltered communication we decided to delve further into our virus inquiry and see what additional information we could get from Mr. Gibbs. We asked Mr. Gibbs what type of technology or security approaches they were taking to attack the virus. He quickly responded by stating that no technology has been implemented to rid the White House of the virus. He said that science was on their side with this virus and that he anticipates it to be fully eradicated within the next 10 days. Being quite puzzled we asked how science would be playing a role with the elimination of the “joker” virus? Mr. Gibbs then looked at us and made a face that we have never seen before (at least not on public television). Mr. Gibbs then exclaimed, “Young Men, I have absolutely nothing to report on the alleged “joker” virus. At this time we can not confirm or deny it’s existence. However, if you would like to continue our conversation about the Rhino-virus infecting the nasal cavities of our staff, I will be more than glad to direct you to our chief of medicine”. With that he gives us a nod of the head, briskly turned around and exited down a winding hallway. Apparently, as new reporters, it WAS our fault and probably a rookie mistake since we did not make mention of the type of virus we were asking about from the beginning.
