Virtually every day, there is an unauthorized user trying to access different places on the net, to promote their own selfish interest. While these acts occur frequently, what separates a huge breach from a minor one? Perhaps the number of affected users.
Since the invention of the internet, there has been diverse hacking and breaching, however, there is a need to examine the ones that have yet to heal from the heart of users as well as those that have had huge damage to companies’ reputation. While some breach happens from users’ carelessness, others arise from leaked and less encrypted information.
Biggest Data Breach In History
Below is compiled the list of the biggest data breach in history.
1. Yahoo
In the last months of 2016, the once giant of electronic mail, Yahoo, made it known that it had been a big victim of a massive data breach. This was made known while the company was in negotiations to sell its ownership to Verizon.
The said data breach was recorded to have occurred in 2013. The breach which claimed personal information of over 500 million users caused the company a tarnished reputation.
Subsequently, the hackers further step up their game in 2014, when they claimed the passwords, date of birth and other personal information of 1 billion users, including their security questions and phone numbers. While Yahoo’s encryption was unable to recover this for users, months later, the hackers further added more to their acts making them possess a total sum of 5 billion accounts.
In case, the breach caused yahoo over $350 million, the company which was once valued at $100 billion was later sold to Verizon at a ridiculous amount of $4.48 billion. What a loss!
2. Marriott International
Marriott International recorded its highest loss when cyber thieves breached their data on over 500 million users. The hackers who gained access to Marriott stole their user’s personal data including phone numbers and passwords.
Until 2018, the hackers remained at Starwood before they were discovered by Marriott who had just taken over possession of the place. In accordance with a New York Times publication, it was said that these hackers had been working in alliance with the Chinese government who wanted to gather information about US citizens. If the latter is true, then this would be the biggest breach by a state-nation.
3. Adult Friend Finder
The Friend Finder Network which is a hookup and adult content relayed website like cams.com and penthouse.com, was breached in October 2016. The breach resulted in the loss of 412.2 million accounts which has been kept safe for 20 years before the hackers staged up their acts.
Users lost their passwords and personal information to these hackers while the company was in loss for tons of cash as well as credibility from users and the public was lost too.
4. eBay
More like hackers always target big companies and organizations, this was the case for the giant online auction organization. The cyberattack against eBay in May 2014 was said to have exposed users names, date of birth, address as well as their encrypted passwords.
Over 145 million users were lost in the hand of hackers. The hackers who made the users make payments with their cards were said to have acquired over $45 million from breaching eBay’s data.
5. Equifax
The breach on Equifax is said to have been one of the biggest in US history. The breach which tools place on 29th of July, 2017 claimed over 143 million users data breached whole 209,000 consumers had their credit card data exposed and subsequently breached as well.
6. Heartland Payment Systems
In March 2008, Heartland payment systems meet a doom when hackers gained access and breached their systems. At the time of the breaching, Heartland was processing over 100 million payments.
Not until January 2009, the breaching was not noticed. The breach which claimed a total of 134 million credit cards and 175,000 merchants’ account were tampered with. Unlike other breachings, the hackers, Albert Gonzalez and two unnamed Russians, were nabbed and jailed 20 years imprisonment
7. Target Stores
In the last month of 2013, Target Stores had systems bravely. The breach which took place before Thanksgiving was yet to be noticed until over 110 million users were affected weeks later.
The retail giant had to make the awareness that unauthorized third parties have gained access and breached their user’s credit cards and personal information through an HVAC vendor. The total amount of loss recorded by Target Stores ranged to about $162 million.
8. TJX Companies, Inc.
In December 2006, a data breach on TJX Companies Inc cost them the loss of over 94 million credit card and users information to hackers. While Albert Gonzalez who masterminded the Heartland breach was involved in this hacking as well, he had made some million dollars before he was arrested and subsequently jailed again.
9. Uber
What can breach a transportation company causes the users and beneficiaries? This question remains unanswered, however, Uber lost the personal information of over 57 million users to the hands of deadly hackers in 2016. Leaving to them the loss of $100,000, and breach of user’s trust.
10. JP Morgan Chase
The July 2014 breach of over 76 million households and 7 million small businesses on the largest bank in the US would not be so easily forgotten. Following the attacks, Gery Shalon, Joshua Samuel Aaron and Ziv Orenstein, all Israelis, were arrested and charged on 23 counts bordering on including unauthorized access of computers, identity theft, securities and wire fraud and money laundering that netted them an estimated $100 million.
Conclusion
All these data breaches mentioned indicates the necessity for internet users to look to protect themselves online. In addition to that, the only safety measure available to all is a Virtual Private Network.
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How Does RitaVPN Protect Your Privacy?
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