Kevin J. O’Brien reports: A German computer engineer said Monday that he had deciphered and published the secret code used to encrypt most of the world’s digital mobile phone calls, in what he called an attempt to expose weaknesses in the security of the world’s wireless systems. The action by the encryption expert Karsten Nohl…
Category: Of Note
Top 10 Worst Data Losses or Breaches, updated
It’s been a while since I last revised my list of the largest breaches or data loss incidents worldwide, and the end of the year seems like a good time to look back at what may have been the worst incidents ever in terms of numbers. Remember when the stolen V.A. laptop made headlines in…
Judge Gives Preliminary OK To Countrywide breach settlement
Brett Barrouquere of the Associated Press reports: A federal judge has given preliminary approval to a settlement between Countrywide Financial Corp., and millions of customers whose detailed financial information was exposed in a security breach. Under the terms of the settlement, Countrywide, now owned by Bank of America, would give up to 17 million people…
UK: Hole in banking system allowed ‘shocking’ scam
The UK Press Association reports: A judge condemned a “shocking hole” in the banking system as he jailed two London fraudsters who profited from an internet scam thought to involve 180,000 British credit cards. Gboyega Akinbola, 36, and Oyetunde Oyedeji, 31, went on a lavish spending spree worth an estimated £60,000 after ordering more than…
Happy Holidays from DataBreaches.net
Happy holidays, everyone! I’ve met so many terrific people through this site this past year and look forward to meeting many more. May those of you who spend your days protecting our data from data thieves find extra treats under the Christmas tree for all your hard work. And if you’re taking some time off…
UK: Credit card provider suffers breach, personal data lost
MBNA, the UK¹s largest credit card provider, has confirmed that a laptop containing the personal details of its customers has been stolen from one of its third party contractors NCO Europe Ltd earlier this month. The information is said to include personal details, however, no PIN numbers were reported to be contained in…