Imagine receiving a notification that your personal information has been compromised; this is the unsettling reality for many after a massive data breach was traced back to National Public Data (NPD), a company specializing in background checks.
This breach became public when a California resident suddenly realized their personal information had been compromised. The individual was shocked and raised serious concerns about how their crucial data was being managed.
Nearly 3 billion records were exposed, each containing sensitive details like names, mailing addresses, email addresses, social security numbers, and even financial information. As this repository of data supplies cybercriminals with everything they need for large-scale identity theft, the danger posed by the breach of data becomes quite clear.
Risks in Data Storage Systems
The NPD breach acts as a shocking wake-up call about the severe flaws in the way that many organizations manage data storage and security protections. Shockingly there remain many organizations today that lack even the most basic security controls! Companies like NPD amass enormous amounts of personal information, often doing business with little oversight or accountability. This incident is a striking reminder of the risks related to such data aggregation approaches and their potential threats to our privacy and security. Now, it’s time to examine how our personal information is handled thoroughly!
“This is a wake-up call for both individuals and organizations”,
said cybersecurity expert Eric Siron in Episode 62 of the Security Swarm Podcast by Hornetsecurity. This episode included a large section covering the NPD data breach and by listening to what cybersecurity experts like Eric, we can conclude that this is a pivotal moment that requires our full attention and action as a security community.
Throughout the podcast, Eric also emphasized that
“The sheer scale of this breach is staggering, which highlights the urgent need for robust data security standards and improved transparency concerning how our personal information is collected and used”.
The implications of this breach are far-reaching. Individuals whose data has been exposed encounter an increased risk of financial fraud, identity theft, and other risks. Businesses that count on NPD’s services for background checks or other purposes will probably find themselves vulnerable as well as the exposed data could be exploited to target their own employees and direct customers.
“The NPD breach serves as a harsh reality of how critical data security and privacy are”,
stated Andy Syrewicze, Technical Evangelist at Hornetsecurity and the host of the Security Swarm Podcast.
“It’s about time for policymakers and industry leaders to closely examine the practices of data brokers and to add robust regulations in place to keep their consumer data safe and sound”.
The Urgent Need for Data Security and Privacy
Experts like Eric and Andy urge individuals to closely monitor their financial accounts and credit reports for suspicious activity. They also recommend taking proactive steps to protect their personal information, such as freezing their credit and using strong, unique passwords for all online accounts. Additionally, as the breach included data linkages that would allow threat-actors to link entities, affected individuals are warned to be on the lookout for impersonation attempts mimicking close family members and/or friends.
As the repercussions of the NPD breach continue to unfold, it’s clear that data privacy and security will remain urgent. The lessons from this breach (amongst many) are essential since the fallout from ignoring to safeguarding personal information can be profoundly significant for both individuals and businesses.
How Cybercriminals Exploit Data Breaches
Once cybercriminals gain access to personal data, they can, unfortunately, exploit it for various activities that can cause headaches for business owners, such as:
Identity Theft
Identity theft is a serious crime with severe consequences. With identity theft, fraudsters can forge identities, open accounts, apply for loans, and engage in various illegal acts using stolen information. This can lead to significant financial or reputational damage for the affected individual. While this can be partially mitigated with credit freezing, identity theft still poses a significant risk.
Phishing Attacks
Personal data enables criminals to form deceptive and convincing phishing schemes to ultimately steal sensitive information and/or introduce malware. After a data breach, the risk of phishing attacks skyrockets, as cybercriminals leverage the stolen data to deceive employees. To protect your organization, it’s crucial to train your employees to recognize and respond to phishing attempts. Always double-check any suspicious requests to avoid falling into this dangerous trap.
Financial Fraud
As one of the most common types of fraud, financial fraud and compromised financial details can often lead to unauthorized transactions, draining victims’ accounts, or misusing credit cards and can lead to other types of attacks such as invoice and payment redirection schemes. Financial fraud can be difficult to recover from as victims will struggle to recover stolen funds or even correct unauthorized charges to their assets, which can be a very time consuming process.
Social Engineering
With the stolen data in hand, attackers can manipulate victims into divulging even more information, leading to voice-based attacks (vishing) or SMS scams (smishing). By using various tactics, scammers can trick potential victims into providing personal or corporate information through phone or SMS. Employees should always be aware of what can happen to themselves and the business and be prepared for cyber-attacks that seek to use the stolen data in an effort to socially manipulate them.
How Hornetsecurity Can Elevate Your Security Awareness Efforts
The massive data breach linked to National Public Data (NPD) has exposed 3 billion personal records, which raises severe concerns about data security and privacy. As cybercriminals exploit sensitive information, individuals and organizations must take immediate action to protect themselves from identity theft and other malicious activities.
Empower your team with Hornetsecurity’s Security Awareness Service, driven by next-gen AI technology. Our set-it-and-forget-it Awareness Engine operates on autopilot, creating a sustainable security culture tailored to each employee’s needs. Numerous businesses enjoy fully automated, demand-driven e-training that adapts as your team’s knowledge grows.
At Hornetsecurity, we provide cutting-edge spear phishing simulations developed to enhance and protect your team against sophisticated cyber threats, making sure they stay vigilant in a constantly changing environment. Taking the first step toward peace of mind is easy, simply request a demo today and effortlessly enhance your organization’s security posture!