Hey, You! Quit Gambling at the Office!

For any Dilberts who spend time in the office betting on the Yankees in hopes of exiting the rat race, you have something to worry about besides being caught by your boss: identity theft.

That's because federal agents arrested an internet gambling website employee on Sunday for his alleged involvement in a large identify-theft ring.

The F.B.I. and Justice Department said that Patrick Kalonji, who worked in the credit department of BetOnSports.com, conspired with other, unnamed suspects to obtain private information from bettors.

The information included details -- including Social Security numbers, credit card numbers, three-digit credit-card security codes, and mother's maiden names -- that would be very useful in stealing someone's identity and running up large debts in their name.

The authorities said the suspects then emailed other ring members, who did just that: Used the identities to pilfer money from bank accounts and make credit-card purchases.

Kalonji is being charged with conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud.

By the way, don't look for help from BetOnSports.com. It has its own problems: According to the website, it is "unable to repay customers due to cash-flow constraints, along with legal and operational interruptions." Hmmmm.

No phone contact is available and as of now, they have yet to respond to emails.

by Jennifer Lai