Robin Sidel reports: Terrified by a string of recent hacks, banks are spending billions of dollars trying to fend off a faceless army of digital intruders. But the biggest threats may come from within. Banks fear a growing number of employees are unwittingly exposing valuable information to hackers or in some cases leaving digital clues that…
Database leak exposes 3.3 million Hello Kitty fans (UPDATED)
Over on Salted Hash, Steve Ragan reports on yet another MongoDB Database leak uncovered by Chris Vickery. This one involves a database for sanriotown.com, the official online community for Hello Kitty and other Sanrio characters. As such, a lot of children’s information may be in the database. The records exposed include first and last names, birthday…
Comcast to pay $25.95 million to settle charges over hazardous waste disposal and privacy breach
From the California Attorney General’s Office this past week: SAN FRANCISCO – Attorney General Kamala D. Harris and Alameda County District Attorney Nancy E. O’Malley today announced a settlement with Comcast Cable Communications LLC (“Comcast”) to resolve allegations that Comcast both unlawfully disposed of hazardous waste and discarded records without first omitting or redacting private customer…
The FBI is investigating Juniper’s big, embarrassing security hole
Julie Bart reports: Things have gone from bad to worse over a big security hack that put “unauthorized code” inside security equipment sold by Juniper Networks. On Thursday, Juniper disclosed the problem, which affected its NetScreen firewalls. Firewalls are security devices that are supposed to help protect networks from being hacked. Now the FBI is investigating the…
Ca: Halifax doctor reprimanded for snooping in case files of injured workers
Claire Mellor reports: The regulatory body for physicians in Nova Scotia has reprimanded a Halifax physician for inappropriately accessing injured workers’ charts at the Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia. A College of Physicians & Surgeons of Nova Scotia decision released Thursday said Dr. Donald Haigh consented to a reprimand for breaching expected standards of…
Healthcare industry gets cybersecurity support in omnibus bill
Beth Kutscher reports: The healthcare information technology sector is hailing healthcare-specific cybersecurity provisions that have made their way into the massive omnibus legislation that Congress passed on Friday. The $1.1 trillion spending and tax extender bill, which is now on its way to President Barack Obama, includes language that closely follows the recommendations from the Healthcare Information…