It’s the shortest month of the year, but it has not been short of breaches or cyber attacks.
The list is the usual mix of ransomware attacks and careless employees causing data breaches.
Our US readers, however, will be well aware that tax day is fast approaching, so W-2 phishing is rife. Earlier this month, the IRS sent out an urgent alert warning employers that this W-2 phishing scam had spread beyond the corporate world to other sectors, including school districts, tribal organisations and non-profits.
It’s vital that you ensure that your employer’s HR department knows how to avoid falling for these scams.
On to the list…
Cyber attack
Gov, OMES Confirm Agency Hacked, No Ransom Paid
Hackers demand $25k-$30k after ransomware attack takes down Bingham county servers
Yahoo tells users they were hit with cookie attack
University suffers cyber attack from its own vending machines and lamp posts
Isis-linked hackers attack NHS websites to show gruesome Syrian civil war images
Pro-Trump group hacked, website taken down in Cabinet fight
Hackers demand £1 million from David Beckham’s advisers
Norway’s Labour Party was hacked by Russia: report
Ransom demanded in Licking County technology hack
Tiverton town hall has two years’ worth of documents deleted by virus that demanded £3,000 ransom
Data breach
South Washington School District probes hacking by student
NYC Dept. of Education email gaffe exposes 439 paraprofessionals’ SSN
Millions of IGN and PCMag user records sit exposed, online
Email Lists Revealing Students’ Private Information Remained Public for Years
Hackers who took control of PC microphones siphon >600 GB from 70 targets
Cleveland Food Bank Loses Personal Data for Dozens of Clients
Lexington Medical Center latest victim of data breach
Family Service Rochester experiences data breach
Thousands of medical records stolen
UNC: PATIENTS’ DENTAL RECORDS MAY HAVE BEEN STOLEN
Privacy commissioner apologises for accidentally releasing email addresses
PharmaNet breach compromises personal information of 7,500 B.C. residents, says province
Fulton County clinic dumps sensitive medical records in plain sight
20,000+ tribal members warned of data breach
City notifying staff whose private information was compromised
Laptop and files with confidential information about Aberdeen children stolen
Top End Health Service breach exposes private details of cancer patients
Hacker steals 83,000 accounts from UPI news agency
Mag publisher Future stored your FileSilo passwords in plaintext. Then hackers hit
15,000 data files of Taiwanese nationals possibly hacked: Govt
Sports Direct hacked last year, and still hasn’t told its staff of data breach
Five months after learning of problem, Michigan cancer treatment provider notifies 22,000 patients
Princeton Pain Management notifies patients after hacker gains access to PHI
Laptop-light GoCardless says customers’ personal data may have been lifted
Used government computers bought at auction filled with personal information
Denuvo Website Leaks Secret Information, Crackers Swarm
Data from 2014 hack of children’s online game Bin Weevils leaked online; hacker claims 20m records
Vulnerability put 1.87 million Michigan employees at risk
Hundreds of confidential email addresses were shared with landlords operating in Cardiff
Particle accelerator hacked: Boffins’ hashed passwords beamed up
2.5 million PlayStation and Xbox players’ details stolen by hackers
Financial information
Citizens Memorial Hospital investigates breach of employee data
Data breach hits San Antonio Symphony employees
Hundreds of Arby’s restaurants breached
PC Plus points stolen from customer accounts in security breach
Malware hit Hitachi Payments Services, 3.2 million cards affected
InterContinental reports payment card breach at 12 U.S. hotels
Other
A Hacker Just Pwned Over 150,000 Printers Left Exposed Online
An Anonymous group just took down a fifth of the dark web
German parents urged to destroy data-collecting toy doll
Trends and traits of data breaches
To help you understand the trends and traits of data breaches, what they are, how and why they occur, and what you can do to avoid suffering a similar fate, take a look at our book of the month: Managing Information Security Breaches – Studies from real life by Michael Krausz.
This thought-provoking guide details how breaches can be treated and the direction you should take if you’ve been affected.