Discover Top Posts Tagged with #data breaches

Monthly Cybersecurity Briefing (28 July – 31 August 2025)

August 2025 was marked by a sharp increase in zero-day exploitation and ransomware campaigns targeting enterprises, critical infrastructure, and cloud platforms. Multiple vendors, including Cisco, Microsoft, Citrix, and Apple, released emergency patches for actively exploited vulnerabilities, highlighting persistent systemic weaknesses.

Large-scale data breaches continued to affect millions of individuals. Notable incidents included Allianz Life, TransUnion, Farmers Insurance, Bouygues Telecom, and Columbia University, often linked to third-party system compromises and phishing campaigns exploiting Salesforce integrations. Personal, financial, and health information were commonly exposed.

AI and LLM security became a focal concern as researchers demonstrated prompt injection, jailbreaks, and other methods to bypass safeguards in GPT-5, GitHub Copilot, and Claude Code. Malicious AI-assisted campaigns increased the sophistication and reach of phishing, credential theft, and ransomware operations.

Ransomware activity remained intense, with groups such as Akira, RomCom, Charon, and BlackSuit conducting targeted attacks. Law enforcement disrupted Royal and BlackSuit ransomware gangs, seizing infrastructure and cryptocurrency. INTERPOL’s Operation Serengeti 2.0 dismantled networks across Africa, recovering millions in illicit funds.

Critical infrastructure vulnerabilities were widely reported. Exploits affecting Dell ControlVault3, Cisco RADIUS, Rockwell and Siemens OT systems, and Docker Desktop highlighted persistent operational technology risks. Industrial, telecommunications, and government networks continued to face espionage campaigns from state-linked actors, including Salt Typhoon and Static Tundra.

Malware, supply chain, and mobile threats expanded, with campaigns such as Anatsa, Hook v3, PipeMagic, and TamperedChef leveraging trojanised apps, phishing, and legitimate tools for persistent compromise. These incidents underscored the growing intersection of software supply chains and AI-assisted attack vectors.

Source: CyberSecBrief

#zero-day #ransomware #data breaches #AI security #state-sponsored #supply chain #mobile malware #critical infrastructure

A third-party customer service system used by Discord's support teams has been hacked, compromising some user personal …

A third-party customer service system used by Discord's support teams has been hacked, compromising some user personal data, including government IDs.

Discord has written to some users confirming that on 20th September, personal data was obtained by "an unauthorised party" which gained limited access, including "a small number of government‑ID images such as driver's license and passports from users who had appealed an age determination".

Discord – which is used by millions of gamers across the world – says information shared by users with its Customer Support or Trust and Safety teams was "exposed", including real names, Discord name, email, contact address, limited payment information – including payment type, last four digits of credit cards, and purchase history – IP addresses, and messages and attachments sent to customer support. Limited corporate data, including training materials and internal presentations, was also exposed.

Full credit card numbers or CCV codes, Discord activity or messages, and passwords or authentication data were reportedly not compromised, but Discord has not revealed how many of its millions of users may have been impacted.

In a blog post, Discord insisted that just "a limited number of users who had communicated with customer support" were impacted, and the authorised party did not gain access to Discord directly. It also claimed to have taken "all appropriate steps" by notifying data protection authorities, law enforcement, and "reviewed our threat detection systems and security controls for third-party support providers".

"Looking ahead, we recommend impacted users stay alert when receiving messages or other communication that may seem suspicious. We have service agents on hand to answer questions and provide additional support," Discord said. "We take our responsibility to protect your personal data seriously and understand the inconvenience and concern this may cause."

#Discord #psa #cybersecurity #welcome to the panopticon #data breaches

From Clippy to Control: The Politics of a Changing Internet

There is a certain irony in the fact that one of the most recognizable symbols of online protest in 2025 is a cartoon paperclip from the late 1990s. Clippy, Microsoft’s awkward but well-meaning virtual assistant, has been resurrected by Louis Rossmann, an electronics repair advocate who has spent years fighting corporate overreach in the technology sector. His recent call for people to change…

#AI age verification #Clippy #data breaches #Free Speech #government policy #KOSA #Louis Rossmann #online safety #Politics #privacy #SCREEN Act #Tea app #Technology #UK Online Safety Act #YouTube

Donald Trump's most important security advisers used Signal to discuss an imminent military strike. Now, reporting by DER SPIEGEL has found

Patrick Beuth, Jörg Diehl, Roman Höfner, Roman Lehberger, Friederike Röhreke, and Fidelius Schmid at Der Spiegel:

Private contact details of the most important security advisers to U.S. President Donald Trump can be found on the internet. DER SPIEGEL reporters were able to find mobile phone numbers, email addresses and even some passwords belonging to the top officials. To do so, the reporters used commercial people search engines along with hacked customer data that has been published on the web. Those affected by the leaks include National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. Most of these numbers and email addresses are apparently still in use, with some of them linked to profiles on social media platforms like Instagram and LinkedIn. They were used to create Dropbox accounts and profiles in apps that track running data. There are also WhatsApp profiles for the respective phone numbers and even Signal accounts in some cases. As such, the reporting has revealed an additional grave, previously unknown security breach at the highest levels in Washington. Hostile intelligence services could use this publicly available data to hack the communications of those affected by installing spyware on their devices. It is thus conceivable that foreign agents were privy to the Signal chat group in which Gabbard, Waltz and Hegseth discussed a military strike.

Numbers Linked to Signal Accounts

It remains unclear, however, whether this extremely problematic chat was conducted using Signal accounts linked to the private telephone numbers of the officials involved. Tulsi Gabbard has declined to comment. DER SPIEGEL reporting has demonstrated, though, that privately used and publicly accessible telephone numbers belonging to her and Waltz are, in fact, linked to Signal accounts. [...] The White House confirmed the scandal after the fact. Trump insisted that it did not include classified content, a question that is of particular relevance since members of the U.S. government are not permitted to share such information over Signal. The U.S. special envoy for Ukraine and the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, was even in Russia while participating in the chat group.

DER SPIEGEL was able to find some of the contact information for Gabbard, Hegseth and Waltz in commercial databases, while other information was in so-called password leaks, which are hardly a rarity on the internet. One example is the 2019 discovery by Troy Hunt, who found 773 million email addresses and more than 21 million passwords in a hacker forum. Since then, there have been numerous additional leaks. Criminals are constantly compiling new collections from hacks, usually to sell them on forums. [...] The mobile number provided, meanwhile, led to a WhatsApp account that Hegseth apparently only recently deleted. The profile photo showed a shirtless Hegseth in a baseball cap and necklace. Comparisons with other photos of the U.S. secretary of defense using facial recognition software were able to confirm that the photo on the WhatsApp profile was indeed Hegseth.

Several Passwords in Leaked Database

Waltz’s mobile number and email address could be found using the same service provider. The mobile phone number could even be found using a people search engine popular in the U.S. DER SPIEGEL reporters were also able to find several passwords for Waltz’s email address in leaked databases. The information also led to Waltz’s profiles for Microsoft Teams, LinkedIn, WhatsApp and Signal. National Intelligence Director Gabbard was seemingly more careful with her data than her two male colleagues. She apparently had her own data blocked in the commercial contact search engines that contained the data of Hegseth and Waltz. But her email address was to be found on WikiLeaks and Reddit. Gabbard’s email address is available in more than 10 leaks. One of those also contains a partial telephone number, which, when completed, leads to an active WhatsApp account and a Signal profile.

German publication Der Spiegel writes that several of the National Security Advisers for the Trump Administration, including Pete Hegseth, Tulsi Gabbard, and Michael Waltz, had their private data breached and the passwords found online.

#Der Spiegel #Pete Hegseth #Tulsi Gabbard #Michael Waltz #National Security #Trump Administration II #Yemen Signal Leak #Data Breaches #Steve Witkoff #Jeffrey Goldberg #Signal #John Ratcliffe

Names and physical addresses exposed but not financial information

Fortunately for affected customers though, it appears that only personal information was stolen during this attack and financial information wasn’t accessed.

Oh, nice. Apparently data breaches have become so commonplace that “only personal information was stolen” is regarded as A-OK now. 🙄

#Dell #data breach #data breaches #information security #security #privacy #identity theft

What is Zero Trust Architecture?

Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) is a security model that operates on the principle "never trust, always verify." Unlike traditional security models that assume everything within a network is trustworthy, ZTA requires verification for every access request, regardless of whether it originates inside or outside the network.

Why is it Important?

In today's digital landscape, cyber threats are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Zero Trust Architecture helps mitigate risks by continuously verifying every user and device, ensuring that only authorized entities can access sensitive information.

How Does It Protect You?

1. Enhanced Security: By requiring strict verification, ZTA minimizes the risk of unauthorized access and data breaches.

2. Reduced Attack Surface: Limiting access to only what is necessary decreases potential entry points for attackers.

3. Real-time Monitoring: Continuous monitoring and verification help detect and respond to threats promptly.

Adopt Zero Trust Architecture with Century Solutions Group to fortify your cybersecurity defenses and protect your business from evolving cyber threats! #ZeroTrust #CyberSecurity #CenturySolutionsGroup

Learn More:https://centurygroup.net/cloud-computing/cyber-security/

#Zero Trust Vulnerability #zero trust #cybersecurity #data backup #data breaches #cyberattack