Andrew Hay writes:
If you’re like us you have a hard time remembering the point of sale (PoS) breaches that have occurred over the years. In an effort to simplify past public breaches, we have created a timeline that describes 59 distinct PoS-related breaches where the following were (or are believed to be) true:
- Malicious software was installed or a malicious actor gained unapproved access to the PoS system,
- Card holder information was, or could have been, exfiltrated from the organization, and
- The breach was reported via a publicized breach notification or by the media
The incidents were found through a combination of “intense Googling”, referencing various news outlets, such as KrebsOnSecurity and ThreatPost, and several breach databases including the VCDB VERIS Community Database and the OSF DataLossDB.
Read more on Open DNS Security Labs. Although the post doesn’t name DataBreaches.net as a resource in compiling the timeline, clicking on the linked incidents in the timeline shows that this blog was put to good use in the compilation.
Oops, I’ll have to update that attribution in the body of the post! 🙂
Not necessary, but appreciated. I was just glad to see the blog put to good use! Very interesting data.
It’s a wonderful resource, fascinating perspective on the growing threat. Two more similar of late summer that I’m following are Otto’s Pizza (http://www.pressherald.com/2014/08/22/data-breach-reported-at-otto-pizza-in-portland/) and Beef O’Brady’s (http://www.wtsp.com/story/news/local/2014/09/09/potential-data-breach-at-4-beef-o-bradys-locations/15331197/); both appear to be hit by versions of “BackOff” which appears to be the “go-to” malware this year.
PoS systems are the weakest link in data-chain-of-custody and payment card systems need to grow up to the new era. It’s no coincidence that restaurants are the dominant presence on this list: the modern era of credit cards began in 1949 at a restaurant when Frank McNamara called for the check, realized his wallet was in another suit and founded Diners Club as a result. And not a whole lot has changed since then, magnetic stripe notwithstanding.
Thanks, updated. I had Beef O’Brady’s in there before but i’m not sure why it disappeared.