Bitglass Security Spotlight: Yale, LifeLock, SingHealth, Malware Evolving & Reddit Breached

By Jacob Serpa, Product Manager, Bitglass

Here are the top cybersecurity headlines of recent months:

—Future malware to recognize victims' faces

—Reddit suffers breach

—6 million records of Georgian voters exposed

—RASPITE Group attacks US infrastructure

—Decade-old breach at Yale uncovered

—Bug exposes LifeLock customer data

—Patient data of 1.5 million exposed in SingHealth breach

—Tesla, GM, Toyota, and others expose 157 GB of data

—COSCO hit with ransomware attack

Future malware to recognize victims' faces

Malware is poised to continue its evolution and deploy newer, more advanced capabilities. In particular, it is believed that threats will leverage artificial intelligence in order to become increasingly context aware. For example, malware may soon employ facial recognition that uses an individual's appearance to trigger an attack.

Reddit suffers breach

Early last month, a hacker was discovered to have breached Reddit's systems and stolen a variety of user data; for example, email addresses, passwords, private messages, and more. While the breached data came from an unsecured database containing information from 2005 to 2007, the incident still highlights the importance of maintaining constant visibility and control over data.

6 million records of Georgian voters exposed

Voters in Georgia recently had their personal information exposed when the office of the Secretary of State granted various parties access to voter registration data in an unsecured fashion. This data included dates of birth, drivers license numbers, and Social Security numbers. If the data were obtained by nefarious individuals, widespread identity theft could ensue very easily.

RASPITE Group attacks US infrastructure

Since 2017, the RASPITE Group has been a cybersecurity threat that has attacked nations around the world. Countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe have all suffered. Recently, the cybercriminal group was tied to Iran and found to be targeting electric utility companies in the US. Naturally, these organizations must have adequate defenses lying in wait

Decade-old breach at Yale uncovered

About ten years ago, Yale University suffered a breach. Unfortunately, at the time, the intrusion was not detected. Alumni and various faculty and staff had information like Social Security numbers exposed. This event highlights the need for proactive cybersecurity measures as well as constant threat monitoring.

Bug exposes LifeLock customer data

In an ironic twist of fate, LifeLock, an organization built upon defending customers from identity theft, was found to have exposed its users' email addresses through a bug. The company's users are now more vulnerable to targeted phishing attacks that imitate communications from LifeLock.

Patient data of 1.5 million exposed in SingHealth breach

Singaporean healthcare organization, SingHealth, was recently breached – much to the ire of those in the country pushing for Singapore to become a cloud-first nation. The cybersecurity incident exposed sensitive information belonging to 1.5 million, including 160,000 whose prescription details were stolen.

Tesla, GM, Toyota, and others expose 157 GB of data

Leading automotive companies (Ford, Volkswagen, and many others) were recently found to have extensive amounts of proprietary information publicly available online. The data was reportedly exposed by poor configurations around rsync protocol, demonstrating, once again, the importance of maintaining a robust and detail-oriented security posture.

COSCO hit with ransomware attack

As one of the biggest shipping enterprises in the world, COSCO sends countless goods around the globe every day. Unfortunately, the company was recently hit with a ransomware attack that harmed some of its US operations. While the company has since responded to the attacks, ransomware continues to represent an imposing threat for businesses everywhere.

To learn about cloud access security brokers (CASBs) and how they can defend against malware, breaches, and more, download the Definitive Guide to CASBs.