Cybercrime was the focus for a public lecture, at the University of Wolverhampton. Tom Illube, who was one of the founders of on-line bank Egg, exposed some of the tactics employed by hackers to steal personal identities and dupe unwitting victims to part with their cash as part of the Leading Lights lecture series.
The series features some of the university’s honorary graduates. Illube is now Managing Director (Consumer Markets) for credit referencing specialists Callcredit. He was made a Doctor of Technology by the University of Wolverhampton in 2005.
He said: “Cybercrime has become a career choice for an increasing number of highly-educated young people who dismiss more conventional employment options. It is relentless, highly-organised, slick and extremely manipulative. Cyber criminals go to great lengths to seem plausible and build up trust, targeting single men and women through online dating sites, for example.”
In the lecture, at the University’s City Campus on Thursday May 17, he urged people to think carefully about the personal detail they revealed on social networking sites and stressed that installing anti-virus software was a must.
