Data breach warning: Sony, 900 colleges, health care org and more targeted
Sometimes, we share alerts about one major hack you need to know about — and other times, there’s enough going on that I need to pack a lot in. Sorry, friends, but this is one of those days. I’ll tell you about the data breaches and what you must do.
Have a PlayStation or Sony account?
Sony was hacked by a group with connections to the Dark Web. They accessed Sony’s internal data, including confidential internal testing information and a document repository containing over 6,000 files.
Sony hasn’t confirmed whether customer data has been compromised, but the group says, “We will sell the data. Due to Sony not wanting to pay. DATA IS FOR SALE. WE ARE SELLING IT.” If you have a PlayStation at home, that could mean you.
Calling all students
Chalk this one up to the massive MOVEit file service transfer breach. Data from roughly 900 colleges and universities is up for grabs.
Personal student information was stolen, including name, date of birth, contact information, Social Security number, student ID number and school-related records. If you have a student in your life, let them know.
Health care hack
Nuance Communications, a health care software company, says over 1.2 million individuals had their personal information revealed, including names, demographic data and names of relatives.
It gets worse. Sensitive medical information was compromised, including dates of service, medical facility information, practitioner’s names, health insurance numbers, medication information, diagnoses and patient identifiers. This is bad, really bad.
Word of warning, vacationers
On Booking[.]com, security researchers discovered hackers were using the site to breach the systems of hotels, booking sites and travel agencies. From there, they used their access to steal customer financial data.
Hackers created a fake Booking[.]com payment page to steal credit card information. Scary stuff: The page looks like a legitimate request from a hotel and is professionally written.
“What the heck do I do about this, Kim?”
Glad you asked. I’m all about action. There’s a new breach around every corner, but you can protect yourself.
- Passwords: Take a good hard look at your passwords, especially for any impacted services. Have a PlayStation or university login? Yep, change that password.
- Medical ID theft: Contact your health insurance provider and ask for your most recent Explanation of Benefits (EOB). Review it and confirm all services were received by you or your family.
- Freeze your credit: Through the three major credit bureaus and sign up for credit monitoring: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.
- Traveling soon? If you booked a trip, room (or anything else) and received a suspicious message, contact the hotel or company directly to confirm it’s legitimate. Don’t click links in any unsolicited emails.
Do your part: Share this important info with a friend or family member. Let’s get more folks tech-safe!
Tags: Booking, breaches, credit card information, Dark Web, hackers, hacks, health care, health insurance, insurance, medical information, passwords, personal information, security, security researchers, Social Security number, Sony, Sony PlayStation, students