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Essays on the Equifax data breach information
Essays on the Equifax data breach information
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NON ACADEMIC POST- About Recent Article on Cyber Security Attacks
Equifax, one of the three major consumer credit reporting agencies, said on Thursday that hackers had gained access to company data that potentially compromised sensitive information for 143 million American consumers, including Social Security numbers and driver’s license numbers.
The attack on the company represents one of the largest risks to personally sensitive information in recent years, and is the third major cybersecurity threat for the agency since 2015.
Equifax, based in Atlanta, is a particularly tempting target for hackers. If identity thieves wanted to hit one place to grab all the data needed to do the most damage, they would go straight to one of the three major credit reporting agencies.
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“If you have a credit report, chances are you may be in this breach. The chances are much better than 50 percent.”
Criminals gained access to certain files in the company’s system from mid-May to July by exploiting a weak point in website software, according to an investigation by Equifax and security consultants. The company said that it discovered the intrusion on July 29 and has since found no evidence of unauthorized activity on its main consumer or commercial credit reporting databases.
In addition to the other material, hackers were also able to retrieve names, birth dates and addresses. Credit card numbers for 209,000 consumers were stolen, while documents with personal information used in disputes for 182,000 people were also taken.
“On a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of risk to consumers, this is a 10,” said Avivah Litan, a fraud analyst at
A huge security breach happened at Equifax which exposed sensitive data like Social Security numbers and addresses. The customers don’t even know that their data has been breached. Equifax gets its data from credit card companies, banks, retailers and lenders sometimes without you knowing. The company has found no evidence of unauthorized activity on Equifax's core consumer or commercial credit reporting databases. Equifax has created the website where
What concerns the government of the United States most is the security of the critical infrastructure from the cyber threats. The nation is depending heavily on the technology in most of its critical sectors to keep it up and running. Thus, this makes its more vulnerable to cyber-attacks from outsiders and insiders. Therefore, its protection must be a priority.
Lynn said that “ over the past few years, all manner of data has been stolen, some of it mundane, some of it concerning our most sensitive systems, including aircraft avionics, surveillance technologies, satellite communications, and network security protocols.” He also acknowledged that the Defense Department lost 24,000 files in cyber attacks by foreign intruders in March 2011.... ... middle of paper ... ...
It is believed that a tool called Apache Struts is reason for the breach. The Apache Struts is a tool utilized not only by Equifax, but by other many large businesses and government organizations as well (Wattles & Larson, 2017). Equifax reportedly utilize this tool to support its online
Hanson, J. R. (n.d.). Fraud or confusion? RDH Magazine, 19(4). Retrieved 3 15, 2014, from http://www.rdhmag.com/articles/print/volume-19/issue-4/feature/fraud-or-confusion.html
How common is identity theft? It is the top consumer fraud complaint. There are an estimated 500-750 thousand victims per year. Different types of fraud that are included in the identity theft crime are identification fraud; credit card fraud; computer fraud; mail fraud; wire fraud; and financial institution fraud. One of the ways this crime can occur is by social security number, they assume an identity, make fraudulent credit charges, get loans, open bank accounts, write bad checks on your account, and commit crimes in a person?s name. Some of the ways thieves get some data is by wallet (you may have left behind), mailbox, or garbage; from insecure financial transactions completed over the Internet; from information left on machines in public; wireless technology such as cell phones; beepers; etc., and some will go so far as going through people?s trash.
In other words, analyzing the mistakes that people make when dealing with their information, can save someone from identity theft. Most identity thieves can get personal information just by simply looking in the trash. Your wallet can get stolen if not kept safely. Anything with information on it such as, credit cards, driver’s license, passports, and health insurance cards, can and will be useful to any identity thieves. Identity theft is a serious crime that can completely wreak your finances, credit history, and reputation.
Today Identity Theft is the fastest growing crime in the United States. The Federal Trade Commission, identity theft victim complaint database currently contains more than three hundred thousand complaints. American consumers reported losing over one billion dollars to fraud overall in 2014, according to the Federal Trader Commissions annual report on consumer complaints released earlier this year, with the average cost ranging between five hundred dollars to two thousand dollars per victim (Federal Trade Commission, 2014). According to the 2011 Identity Fraud Survey Report, approximately eight million adults in the United States were victims of identity theft with the total cost of thirty seven billion dollars (Britz, 2013). The Federal Trade commission strongly urges people to take action in protecting themselves from Identity Theft because everyone is at risk of this rapidly growing crime no matter your age, race, gender or current financial situation. Identity Theft when a illegitimate person gains access to your personal information, such as your Social Security number, credit card account information, your mother's maiden name, your driver's license number, and other important information to impersonate someone. When the criminal has gained the information they need, they have the ability opens credit accounts, cellphone accounts, and other types of credit based accounts in your name. In addition once a person’s information is stolen the criminal then has the ability to access current accounts that is possessed, leading to even further damage to personal finance and credit.
Riley, M., Elgin, B., Lawrence, D., & Matlack , C. (2014, March 13). Target Missed Warnings in Epic Hack of Credit Card Data - Businessweek. Retrieved from http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-03-13/target-missed-alarms-in-epic-hack-of-credit-card-data
Cyberspace has become an increasingly attractive hunting ground for criminals, activists and terrorists motivated to make money, air their grievances, cause disruption or even bring down corporations and governments through online attacks. One of the most significant data breaches in recent years has been the successful theft of 143 million customer records from Equifax. This was a cyber crime with devastating consequences due to the type of personally identifiable information stolen and its effect on the credit markets. A study independently conducted by Accenture estimates the increased cost of cyber crime to be more than US$17 million in 2017 in the financial services, utilities and energy sectors (Accenture Report,
TJX Companies is one of the largest global apparel and home fashions department store chain. For instance the stores owned by TJX Companies consist of T.J. Maxx, HomeGoods, Marshalls, AJWright, and The Maxx, which are located throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe. The sheer volume of transactions processed thru TJX Companies, made this breach so historic, since over 45.7 million card numbers were siphoned out of TJX Companies network and sold in the underground internet black market (Staff, 2007), usually called “data supermarkets”. In these data supermarkets credit card numbers can sell for as little as cents to as much as $10 to $20 per card number depending on quantity or source. Hackers have a complicated underground network for disseminating out this credit card data as quickly as possible, since the longer it takes for the bad guys to actually use the data the higher the chance the loss of the data would be discovered. Unfortunately the data breach at TJX Com...
This occurs by human error or by spitefully releasing data. Social engineering, Pretexting and Phishing are types of unauthorized data disclosure. These are performed by someone pretending to be someone else (pretexting) to obtain unauthorized data from a company or business. The “phisher” acts as a genuine company/ business and sends e-mails asking for personal and confidential information. Phishers use skillful techniques in order to copy trade marks in order to look legit.
There are various ways for identity thieves to acquire personal data. " In public places, criminals may engage in 'shoulder surfing', watching you from a nearby location as you punch in your telephone calling card number or credit card number, or [they may] listen in on your conversation if you give your credit-card number over the telephone to a hotel or rental car company" ("Identity Theft."). Identity theft also occurs when "you receive applications for 'pre-approved' credit cards in the mail, but discard
In 2013, five hackers from Russia and Ukraine, were charged with the biggest cybercrime case in U.S. history.” Federal prosecutors announced that they’ve indicted five cybercriminals responsible for a hack that cost targeted companies more than $300 million, they’ve stole at leats 160 credit card numbers.”
One of the worst and most prevalent crimes is identity theft. Such thefts where individuals’ Social Security and credit card numbers are stolen and used by thieves are not new. Criminals have always obtained information about other people by stealing wallets or dumpster digging. But widespread electronic sharing and databases have made the crime worse. Because financial institutions, data processing firms, and retail businesses are reluctant to reveal incidents in which their customers’ personal financial information may have been stolen, lost, or compromised, laws continue to be passed that force those notifications.