News Insights: Hackers Steal and Ransom Financial Data Related to Some of the World’s Largest Companies
Hackers Steal and Ransom Financial Data Related to Some of the Worldâs Largest Companies
The data was stolen from Citycomp, which provides internet infrastructure for dozens of companies including Oracle, Airbus, Toshiba, and Volkswagen.
It was reported today that data was stolen from CITYCOMP, which provides internet infrastructure for dozens of companies including Oracle, Airbus, Toshiba, and Volkswagen. A spokesperson said “Citycomp has been hacked and blackmailed and the attack is ongoing. We have to be careful as the whole case is under police investigation and the attacker is trying all tricks.”
According to Dan Tuchler, CMO at SecurityFirst, “It’s difficult to protect data, especially with the complicated network of interactions between companies and their many suppliers. In this case the victim, CITYCOMP, has taken necessary steps after the attack and has been transparent about reporting it. But the damage is done – the data is released, and CITYCOMP and their customers have taken a blow to their reputations. Organizations need to not only ensure that their data is secure but also take steps to evaluate the security posture of their suppliers. This is not easy, but is vitally important. Suppliers must be ready to demonstrate that they have locked their critical data, provided access controls, and done a thorough security audit.”
Warren Poschman, senior solutions architect with comforte AG, had this reaction: “The data breach at CITYCOMP underscores that data theft for ransom isn’t dead and won’t be anytime soon. Although in most other regions outside of Latin America the focus is instead on ransomware as an attack, and theft of data is typically associated with identity theft or credit card fraud, mayhem and good old extortion are real world threats. Organizations looking to ensure that their data is protected regardless of its location or possession should look to adopt a data-centric security model which ensures that no matter where the data is stored, moved, used or even lost, it is protected and secure – something that could have likely made the CITYCOMP breach a non-event. The right security strategy should protect from both the expected and unexpected!”
Hugh Taylor
Hugh Taylor is a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM). In addition to editing Journal of Cyber Policy, he writes about cybersecurity, compliance and enterprise technology for such clients as Microsoft, IBM, SAP, HPE, Oracle, Google and Advanced Micro Devices. Prior to launching his freelance writing career, he served in executive roles at Microsoft, IBM and several venture-backed technology startups.