Hacked Personal Info: Seems Cheap
February 27, 2020
This comes as no surprise to us, but apparently it is news to some. The SmartDataCollective announces, “Terrifying Big Data Report Shows Anyone Can Get Your Info for $2.” Writer Matt James points to the recent case of WeLeakInfo as an illustration of how little it can cost to buy sensitive personal information online. He writes:
“The eerie fact that WeLeakInfo was selling access to private data for as little as $2 should leave everyone worried – could anyone with some loose change really have your password, social security number, home IP address or email? Yes, if you were a victim of any recent data leak or cyber attack. According to a source in the US Department of Justice, data sold through the site originated from leaks and cyber attacks affecting large online service providers like WeWork, Regus, and many more. Online travel agents and websites that store user information – particularly data about user credentials, payment details, and personal information – were the primary targets of attackers. The 12 billion items collected on the site was not an exaggeration. It seems that a common bot can scrape a huge volume of personal data in just a few hours. Coupled with more modern attack methods such as botnets and smart scrapers, the amount of data that a coordinated attack can collect is staggering. More importantly, there is no data not valuable enough to sell.”
Yes, we’re reminded, it is not just the obvious data like credit card info, addresses, and social security numbers we should be concerned about. Login information, for example, can be used to facilitate cyber-attacks. James runs through the measures one can take to keep data as secure as possible: limit what you share and review privacy policies when you do; use a VPN or proxy server; check in with sites like Have I Been Pwned now and then; and change your (strong) passwords every six months. A good password manager can securely generate and keep track of strong passwords.
Cynthia Murrell, February 27, 2020
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