»
www.bbc.co.uk/news/techn ··· 24284277quote:
Hackers stole millions of social security numbers by cracking open the networks of large US data brokers, reveals an investigation.
The ID details of US First Lady Michelle Obama and many other famous people were exposed by the hack attack.
Journalist Brian Krebs tracked the information back to hackers who ran an online market for confidential data.
He found they got their data by compromising computers sitting on the data brokers' corporate networks.
Deep access
In March, Krebs, as well as the FBI and US Secret Service, started looking into how the exposed.su website was getting hold of social security numbers and other details of many famous Americans.
The mysterious website, which has now been closed down, published confidential information about Bill Gates, Beyonce Knowles, Jay-Z, Ashton Kutcher and many others.
***quote break***
Analysis of the SSNDOB database by Krebs and forensic computer expert Alex Holden, of Hold Security, revealed the ID data being sold had come from machines sitting on the internal networks of several American information aggregation firms. Compromised computers or systems at LexisNexis, Dun & Bradstreet and Kroll were all named by Krebs as the sources of the data.
In the commercial world, the three firms are well known for providing businesses with data about potential commercial partners and customers. The open access the hackers enjoyed meant they could run their own queries about individuals via the databases of the three firms.
When will people/companies learn that anything hooked up to a network/internet is a target for hacking?
Stuff you want to keep secured should be on a computer that stands alone, with no network/internet access. Of course you'd remove the usb/dvd drives as well.
But then again, I guess that would add a layer of hindrance in people being able to do their jobs quickly at such firms.