Tag / 22 entries / page 2 of 3 / feed available
22 of the 76 analyses in Data Breaches carry this tag.
HSF · PEC · EGR · SCA — filled where the invariant would have prevented or contained the breach
Prevented by: PEC, EGR
In January 2021, over 30,000 U.S. companies experienced a cyberattack on Microsoft Exchange email servers. The breach exploited several zero-day vulnerabilities, resulting in unauthorized email access and potentially sensitive data exposure. The attack was primarily attributed to the state-sponsored Hafnium group from China, leveraging server-side request forgery and other sophisticated methods.
In March 2020, Sina Weibo experienced a major data breach impacting 538 million users. The breach exposed personal information, including real names, usernames, gender, and phone numbers, due to an API vulnerability. Data was subsequently sold on the dark web, presenting significant risks of identity theft and phishing attacks.
In November 2019, Alibaba’s Taobao platform was breached by a developer who scraped 1.1 billion pieces of user data, including usernames and mobile numbers. This incident involved unauthorized web scraping by a threat actor using automated tools to collect sensitive personal information.
Prevented by: PEC, EGR
The SolarWinds Supply Chain Attack involved the compromise of SolarWinds Orion software, leading to malicious updates that were installed by over 18,000 customers. This allowed the attackers, attributed to state-sponsored groups, to steal data and spy on organizations including U.S. government departments. The attack exploited software development vulnerabilities to insert SUNBURST malware, affecting multiple sectors globally.
In May 2019, First American Financial Corp. suffered a major data breach that exposed approximately 885 million file records due to a security flaw. The breach involved bank account details and mortgage-related documents, which were accessible through unsecured URLs without authentication. The vulnerability was attributed to insufficient security measures, and there were no specific threat actors identified.
Prevented by: SCA
In November 2018, the Copay cryptocurrency wallet, developed by BitPay, suffered a data breach due to a malicious version of the event-stream Node.js library. The breach involved unauthorized access to users’ private keys and cryptocurrency assets through dependency injection of malicious code by threat actors, significantly affecting wallets with considerable holdings. The attack highlighted vulnerabilities in third-party dependencies within the open-source software ecosystem.
Prevented by: EGR · Contained by: PEC
The Equifax data breach in 2017 exposed sensitive personal and financial information of approximately 145.5 million individuals, including Social Security numbers and birthdates. Attackers exploited a vulnerability in the Apache Struts framework (CVE-2017-5638) to gain unauthorized access. The breach highlighted significant deficiencies in Equifax’s data protection and vulnerability management processes.
Contained by: EGR
The 2016 AdultFriendFinder data breach exposed approximately 412 million user accounts due to vulnerabilities in Local File Inclusion (LFI). Compromised data included usernames, email addresses, and passwords, mostly stored in plaintext or hashed with weak SHA-1, making them vulnerable to cracking. While the exact perpetrators remain unidentified, discussions suggest involvement from actors on Russian forums.
Prevented by: EGR
In October 2013, Adobe suffered a significant data breach compromising 153 million user records, including encrypted credit card information and user account details such as usernames and email addresses. The breach, one of the largest in cybersecurity history, was executed by exploiting vulnerabilities in Adobe’s systems, notably through outdated encryption practices and unpatched ColdFusion servers. The attack was attributed to financially motivated cybercriminals, likely from Eastern Europe or Russia, aiming to sell the stolen data on the black market.
In June 2013, over 360 million user accounts on MySpace were compromised, exposing usernames, email addresses, and passwords due to inadequate security practices. The passwords were stored using weak SHA-1 hashes without salting, making them vulnerable to cracking. A Russian hacker known as “Peace” was linked to this major breach. MySpace subsequently improved its security by adopting double-salted hashing techniques.
