[September 27, 2011] IdentityHawk Identity Breach Report: More than 600K Online Identity Records Were Lost in August Tweet Sep 27, 2011 (Close-Up Media via COMTEX) -- Data breaches are a regular consequence of the online age and they are costing more and more -- to companies and to consumers. According to The Ponemon Institute's 2010 U.S. Cost of a Data Breach study, "the average organizational cost of a data breach increased to $7.2 million from $6.8 million in 2009." IdentityHawk reported 44 publicly-known breaches last month alone, compromising 678,614 online records. The results are part of the "breached institutions" listing from IdentityHawk entitled "The IdentityHawk August 2011 Identity Breach Report." According to the report, individual identity theft victims lose, on average, $4,841 and it takes about 330 hours to recover identities, as reported in an infographic by Jolie O'Dell in Mashable. IdentityHawk is an identity protection service that aggressively zeroes in on potential threats to help consumers safeguard their identity. IdentityHawk's constant data breach alert service is part of IdentityHawk's comprehensive "Fraud Screening." It assures that IdentityHawk members can take swift action to protect their personal identity, upholding the IdentityHawk promise to help "stop fraud before it starts." IdentityHawk said that its members receive alerts of key consumer data breaches. Members can then do the following: 1. Immediately see the details of the breach. 2. Determine if they are affiliated with the fraud event. 3. If affiliated with the breach, IdentityHawk guides members through the steps they need to take protective measures. According to Jeff Paradise, executive director for IdentityHawk, "Since an identity breach can cost a person more than $4,000 and take 330 hours to recover your identity -- knowing if you are in danger and stopping it before it starts is critical. To make sure your identity is safe, you should always know if any of your personal information is in danger of being hacked or compromised. Armed with alerts of possible fraud, our members are guided with the immediate steps to make secure their identity." ((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected])) [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]