Massive Data Breach: 2.9 Billion People Affected
The Scrape: How National Public Data’s Data Collection Went Wrong
Imagine waking up to the news that your personal information has been stolen, along with that of 2.9 billion others. This is exactly what happened when a cybercriminal group called USDoD hacked into National Public Data, a company that specializes in background checks and fraud prevention. The hackers stole names, addresses, Social Security Numbers, and more, and then tried to sell it on the dark web for a whopping $3.5 million.
But how did this happen? National Public Data obtained the data through scraping, a technique used to collect data from websites and online sources. The problem is that they scraped data from non-public sources, meaning many people didn’t know their information was being taken. Now, people are left to deal with the aftermath, monitoring their bank accounts and credit cards for signs of fraud, and hoping that National Public Data will take steps to secure their data and compensate those affected.
https://www.ssa.gov/ (PHOTO: GOOGLE)
The Dark Web Sale: What Happens When Data Breaches Get Exploited
As a result, hackers were able to steal sensitive information, including names, addresses, Social Security Numbers, and more. The hackers then tried to sell this stolen data on the dark web for a whopping $3.5 million. Now, people are left to deal with the aftermath, monitoring their bank accounts and credit cards for signs of fraud, and hoping that National Public Data will take steps to secure their data and compensate those affected.
Report of TomsGuide
