Steve Daniels reports: Peoples Gas and sister utility North Shore Gas have notified an undisclosed number of customers of the possible theft and potential use of personal information about them by a contract worker. The natural gas utilities, which serve nearly 1 million customers in the city of Chicago and many northern suburbs, said in…
Category: Business Sector
Update to Restaurant Depot/Jetro breach
The recent Restaurant Depot/Jetro breach that I reported on Dec. 7 provides a timely example of the issue of unreimbursed harm that consumers grapple with on a daily basis. As I continue to follow media coverage on that breach, it is clear that not only is there financial impact of this breach (the hacked card numbers…
Former RadioShack worker pleads guilty to using customer’s info for identity theft
Dianna Hunt reports: A former RadioShack customer service representative pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to stealing customers’ personal information while trying to resolve their problems. Youlanda Rochelle Wright used the information to file a false income tax return in a client’s name to get a refund of $3,654, according to court records. Wright entered…
eBay merchant exposes hundreds of Aussies
Ben Grubb reports: Beware when shopping online this holiday season as at least one eBay merchant has been found to have exposed the personal information of hundreds of Australians on the internet. Detailed information about a particular eBay seller’s customer transactions – including their phone numbers, postal addresses, email addresses and what a customer purchased…
Square Enix Site Hacked – Again (Updated to Reflect No Personal Info Accessed)
In what appears to be its second breach in 2011, Square Enix has confirmed that it has suffered an intrusion. Matt Mann reports: Today Square Enix announced that both their Japanese and North American Square Enix Members sites have been hacked. According to Square Enix an unknown party gained unauthorized access to servers containing user information in…
Ca: Insider breach at Insurance Corporation of British Columbia linked to shootings, arson
This sounds like it might qualify as one of the worst – if not, THE worst – insider breach of 2011. When people affiliated with the Justice Institute of British Columbia starting seeing their homes shot at or set on fire, the RCMP began an intensive investigation. That probe has now culminated in the firing…