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Data Theft Security

Security can drive business, Microsoft survey finds

Angela Moscaritolo June 24, 2009

Information security presents a unique set of challenges, but it also can enable business, a new Microsoft survey says.

Security expert wants feds to recruit volunteer pen testers

Dan Kaplan June 18, 2009

One respected security researcher wants to legalize the hacking of federal government and military websites -- and he wants everyone to hear him out.

Hackers claim they raided sensitive T-Mobile information

Dan Kaplan June 08, 2009

T-Mobile has yet to release details about an alleged massive hack of its systems.

GAO report finds security lagging at federal agencies

Dan Kaplan May 21, 2009

Federal agencies continue to be lax in their implementation of information security programs, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office.

Hannaford lawsuits tossed

Chuck Miller May 13, 2009

A federal judge has thrown out all but one lawsuit in the Hannaford data breach case. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge D. Brock Hornby said Tuesday that consumers whose payment data are stolen can recover claims only if a merchant's negligence caused a direct loss to the consumer's account; plaintiffs who cited inconvenience or distress because of the breach could not. Of 4.2 million credentials exposed, no more than 1,800 were ever used for unauthorized purchases, according to Hannaford. — CAM

U.S. missile defense information found in disk bought on eBay

Angela Moscaritolo May 07, 2009

A hard disk containing the launch procedures for a U.S. military missile defense system was recently purchased on eBay.

LexisNexis admits to another major data breach

Angela Moscaritolo May 04, 2009

About 32,000 people are being notified that their personal information may have been compromised after a breach at consumer data provider LexisNexis resulted in identity theft and credit fraud, the company has disclosed.

Heartland again PCI compliant

Dan Kaplan May 01, 2009

Breached payment card processor Heartland Payment Systems has been again certified compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), the company announced Friday. In March, two months after the breach was disclosed, Visa removed Heartland from its list of compliant service providers. Some experts questioned whether the removal meant merchants risked being fined for doing business with Heartland, but Visa issued a statement saying this was not true. Heartland said it is expects to rejoin the Visa-approved list on Monday. — DK

Facebook neutralizes phishing attack

Dan Kaplan April 30, 2009

Fraudsters, using hijacked Facebook accounts, tried to lure users of the social networking site into divulging their login credentials.

Corporate users increasingly skirt security infrastructures

Angela Moscaritolo April 16, 2009

In a recent assessment, organizations had an average of 156 applications traversing their networks -- some of which pose a danger to the organization.

Criminals exploit careless mistakes as data breaches hit record

Chuck Miller April 15, 2009

In a study of large-scale data breaches in 2008, Verizon Business found that cybercriminals profited mostly from exploiting careless mistakes.

Cyberattack repairs cost Pentagon $100 million in six months

Angela Moscaritolo April 08, 2009

The Pentagon has spent more than $100 million in the past six months repairing damage to its networks caused by cyberattacks, according to military officials.

Realtors hack competitor email

Angela Moscaritolo April 07, 2009

Three real estate agents in Rockingham, N.C. were charged with illegally accessing a Hotmail account belonging to the employee of a competitor. RE/MAX Tri City Realty agents Wendy Robson Massagee, 43; Kim Dawn Whitley, 40; and Jamie Moss-Godfrey, 41, allegedly used the victim's username and password to access the account and view work-related emails, according to a report in the Richmond County (N.C.) Daily Journal. All three were released and are scheduled to appear in local court on April 23. - AM

Tenn. welfare worker charged

Angela Moscaritolo April 07, 2009

A former child support services worker in Tennessee was arrested after selling the personal information of approximately 1,600 people to an undercover state crime investigator. Steven Gilmore, 27 of Nashville worked for Policy Studies, a private company that operates child support programs, where he had access to personal data. A federal criminal complaint alleges that on three occasions Gilmore sold a total of 35 names, birth dates, and Social Security numbers, according to a news release from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. — AM

Octomom's hospital records accessed, 15 workers fired

Angela Moscaritolo March 31, 2009

Kaiser Permanente Bellflower Medical Center recently fired 15 hospital workers for accessing the medical records of octuplet mother Nadia Suleman without permission.

Google: No significant security issues with Google Docs

Chuck Miller March 27, 2009

Despite apparent security issues in Google Docs, the company is playing down the risks.

No joke -- Conficker worm set to explode on April Fool's Day

Angela Moscaritolo March 13, 2009

Security researchers have warned that Conficker worm's newest variant, which kills protective security processes, is set to activate on April 1.

Background investigator settles with FTC over ID theft

Greg Masters March 05, 2009

An organization that sells consumer information, including names, Social Security numbers, credit card numbers and credit histories, has settled Federal Trade Commission charges that it failed to properly screen potential customers, leading to the sale of at least 318 reports to ID thieves.

Firefox update addresses multiple security issues

Angela Moscaritolo March 05, 2009

Mozilla on Wednesday issued Firefox 3.0.7, which fixes multiple security issues that could potentially enable an attacker to run arbitrary code on a victim's computer, cause a denial-of-service condition, obtain sensitive information, or spoof the location bar, according to an advisory from US-CERT Thursday.

Phishing attack on iStockphoto

Angela Moscaritolo March 04, 2009

Online photography store iStockphoto warned of a phishing attack targeted against its website on Wednesday, "We strongly urge all users who logged in at some point today to change their passwords," the company said on its website. "In addition, do not open any site mail for the next 24 hours." Attackers created a fake iStockphoto login screen, saved users' credentials on a malicious server then redirected them back to the website's main page. The company said that no financial information was breached. — AM

Spoofed Delta Airlines emails contain trojan

Angela Moscaritolo February 27, 2009

Emails spoofed to look like they are coming from Delta Airlines to confirm a ticket purchase are attempting to infect users with a trojan.

Netezza buys Tizor

Dan Kaplan February 26, 2009

Netezza, makers of data management products, has acquired database auditing and monitoring firm Tizor Systems for $3.1 million, according to a filing with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission. The deal will enable Netezza users "to track, store and perform forensic analysis" to help them more readily meet compliance demands, the company said in a release. — DK

Visa confirms another payment processor breach

Dan Kaplan February 23, 2009

Visa has confirmed that yet another payment processor has been hit by hackers.

Data protection lawyer appointed to lead DHS privacy efforts

Dan Kaplan February 19, 2009

A lawyer specializing in data security has been appointed chief privacy officer at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Government travel site hacked, remains shuttered

Greg Masters February 19, 2009

A government travel website used by a dozen federal agencies has been hacked and remains shuttered.

Los Alamos computers go missing

Angela Moscaritolo February 12, 2009

At least 69 computers are missing from the Los Alamos National Laboratory, a national security research institution in New Mexico.

Kaspersky regrets hack but determines no data was leaked

Dan Kaplan February 09, 2009

Romanian hackers could have exposed the database contents of Kaspersky Labs' customers after they were able to compromise the anti-virus company's website on Saturday.