Category: Security

Closure of York Council app after hack

The York Council app that was hacked late last year has reportedly been shut down as a result of the data breach incident.

It’s understood that the public-facing aspect of the app is no longer available. Residents had been able to access it and use it as part of waste-reduction plans and for the improvement of their environmental performance.

After it was discovered that the app lacked the proper security to keep users’ data safe, the app has now been reportedly shut down and is no longer publicly-available.

Chelmsford City Council data breach

Posted by Matthew on January 10, 2019 in the following categories: Claims Council Cybersecurity Security Technology and tagged with council | council data breaches | data controllers | data leak

The Chelmsford City Council data breach was another preventable incident of information exposure by a local authority that has affected thousands of people.

Personal information that was submitted using online forms was accidentally left visible on the website. There’s no way of knowing for sure if the information exposed was used or copied, leaving victims with a lack of closure over the incident.

More than 6,500 people that were affected by the breach have been informed by email that their data has been exposed.

Fortnite hackers making a mint

Posted by Matthew on January 09, 2019 in the following categories: Cybersecurity Hacking News Latest Security and tagged with cyber attack | cyber crime | cybersecurity | online security | personal data

Fortnite hackers – some of whom are as young as 14 – are reportedly making a mint through the practice of “Fortnite Cracking”.

Fortnite, the free-to-play online game where users can make in-game purchases like skins for their characters, has opened up a whole new form of black market. Hackers are targeting accounts and stealing them to then resell them based on the value of the account.

Some of the hackers are reportedly making thousands of pounds from stealing the accounts of other users. Now, authorities are set to be stepping-up their efforts to stop this growing black market.

Have you suffered an Amazon data leak?

If you’ve been the victim of an Amazon data leak, we may be able to help you claim data leak compensation on a No Win, No Fee basis.

The most recent Amazon data leak took place last month, and there wasn’t a great deal of detail released about it. All that was said to victims was that some data had been exposed, and that victims don’t need to take any action. Although this may suggest that the leak was contained, people should always be vigilant. Companies should always ensure to warn people that they may need to take action.

One key element we do understand is that the most recent Amazon data leak reportedly stemmed from an API issue. This is important to know.

Bethesda data leak

Posted by Matthew on January 04, 2019 in the following categories: Cybersecurity Latest Security Technology and tagged with data leak | database security | online security | personal data

The computer gaming giants apologised last month after the Bethesda data leak led to customers being able to access data they shouldn’t have.

According to reports from angry customers, the data leak reportedly involved personal information and some payment data. The leak came off the back of a number of complaints involving the Fallout 76 game, and the leak itself involved the company’s complaints systems.

As the world of online gaming continues to grow, we expect incidents like the Bethesda data leak to become more common. Read More

The NASA data breach

The NASA data breach is a worrying one. An agency as prolific as NASA has been hit by a cyberattack. It makes us wonder – as we often do – is anyone really safe?

Our Data Leak Lawyers are involved in over 20 different data breach actions. These range from the Equifax data breach of 2017, to the British Airways data breach of this year. These are huge hacks that affected large organisations. Each time a new one comes along, we’re a mix of surprised and unsurprised that it has happened. On the one hand, these breaches are happening all the time, but on the other, the big-name breaches are worrying.

Surely there should never be such a thing as a NASA data breach. Yet it has happened…

We need to talk about drone hacking

Posted by Matthew on December 21, 2018 in the following categories: Cybersecurity Hacking News Latest Scammers Security Technology and tagged with cyber attack | cyber crime | cybersecurity | smart technology

As Gatwick Airport has been brought to a standstill over drones accessing the airfield, now is the time we need to talk about drone hacking.

We’ve highlighted this before, but given the news this week, it’s time to bring it up again. If cars can be hacked, so can drones. If smart tech in the home can be hacked, so can drones. If these things can be used to harm people – physically or financially – so can drones. They’re remote-controlled which means a huge door is there to be opened. There also incredibly easy to buy, and hackers have already demonstrated how easy it is to take control of another drone by hacking.

If there’s technology good enough to bring one of the UK’s biggest airports to a standstill, drone hacking is a serious concern.

iPhone app data breaches and hacks

iPhone app data breaches, leaks and hacks are on the rise as much as then use of apps continues to rise in everyday society.

Many people just assume that data on apps and phones is secure. Recent investigations and data breach incidents have told us a totally different story about the security of apps on phones.

People have a lot of reasons to worry. There have been a number of apps that have been comprised through poor security. Potentially millions of people are putting their private and sensitive data at risk every day.

Another Facebook data leak

There’s been another Facebook data leak, and yet again, millions of users are said to have been affected.

The fines that Facebook could now face in accordance with GDPR are mounting. This is one of many data leaks that have been revealed recently. The previous one, affecting some 29m users, was only discovered a couple of months ago.

In this latest Facebook data leak, a software bug has led to users’ photos being uploaded to websites without permission.

Fine issued for Uber cyber attack

A hefty fine has been issued over the 2016 Uber cyber attack as a result of security flaws that could have prevented the breach in the first place.

The data for some 2.7m Uber customers in the UK was compromised, as were the records for over 80,000 drivers. The fine, issued by the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office), is small in comparison to potential GDPR fines. This is because the cyber attack took place in 2016 before the new rules came into force.

Had the cyber attack have happened this year, Uber could have faced fines in the millions.