NHS Education for Scotland (NES) has agreed to improve data security after it informed the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) of a data breach involving the theft of an unencrypted laptop containing the personal information of 6377 applicants for medical training positions. The information included names, addresses, phone numbers and summaries of the applicants, as well…
Author: Dissent
Austrian patient data landed on the net
A reader, Ewald Proll , sends this breach report: In Austria, hackers retrieved from the internet a database containing emergency data. These data had been transmitted unsecured and were intercepted by an individual, using a scanner, a soundcard, and a freely distributed piece of software. The authorities refused to comment this leakage so far. Source:…
30,000 California patients notified of burglary
The burglars broke in, but did they take anything? 23ABC reports that 30,000 patients of Kern Medical Center are being notified that burglars broke into a storage container where patients’ paper billing records were stored. The records contain patients’ confidential information including names, addresses, date of births, insurance providers and social security number. “There’s no…
Austrian Patient Data Landed on the Net
A reader, Ewald Proll, sends this breach report: In Austria, hackers retrieved from the internet a database containing emergency data. These data had been transmitted unsecured and were intercepted by an individual, using a scanner, a soundcard, and a freely distributed piece of software. The authorities refused to comment this leakage so far. Source: Heise…
Website exposes sensitive details on military personnel
Dan Goodin reports: Programming errors on a website that helps commuters carpool to work are exposing sensitive information of workers for hundreds of employers in Southern California, including at least one military installation. The bugs, discovered last month on RideMatch.info, allow hackers access to a variety of personal information, including individuals’ names, home addresses, phone…
Data Breaches: Patterns and Their Implications
Luther Martin of Voltage Security has an article on patterns in breaches and how recognizing certain patterns or mathematical likelihoods can help us determine if industry efforts to reduce breaches are actually making an impact. You can read his article on CSO Online.