Asher Moses reports: Telstra is being investigated by both the communications and privacy watchdogs after it sent out 220,000 letters that contained account information belonging to other customers. The letters, which contained the name, phone number and telephone plan of customers other than the recipients, explained upcoming fixed line price changes. Telstra blamed the privacy…
Category: Of Note
Health insurers say data on 280,000 Pennsylvania clients may be compromised
Jane M. Von Bergen reports: Keystone Mercy Health Plan and AmeriHealth Mercy Health Plan said Tuesday that a portable computer drive containing the names, addresses, and health information of 280,000 Medicaid members in Pennsylvania has been lost. The affiliated companies together insure 400,000 people on medical assistance in Pennsylvania. The companies said the portable computer…
Why I think Microsoft’s claims that breaches are down are seriously confounded
Ever since yesterday morning when I read that Microsoft reported that breaches involving data loss are down, it’s been a puzzlement because all of the data I’ve seen this year suggest that the number of breach reports are up. I think I’ve figured out how they came to what I see as an erroneous statement….
Illinois AG sues Payday Loan Store over improper disposal of customer data
Attorney General Lisa Madigan today filed a lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court against The Payday Loan Store of Illinois, Inc. (PLS), for allegedly failing to safeguard customer data as promised. The Attorney General filed the suit after learning that documents containing customers’ personal information had turned up in trash bins outside four store locations….
University of North Florida: over 106,000 being notified of hack from outside of U.S.
The University of North Florida has issued this statement on its website: Impacted individuals being notified Between September 24, 2010 and September 29, 2010, a UNF file containing the personal information of high school and college students (and others interested in UNF) may have been accessed by unauthorized persons outside the United States. While immediate steps…
Data breaches plummet: Microsoft
Darren Pauli reports: Security breaches resulting in the loss of personal data have almost halved this year compared with 2009 figures, according to Microsoft. While theft, loss of equipment and reckless data disposal still account for the lion’s share of data breaches, total incidents have fallen by some 46 percent in the first half of 2010 compared…