Monthly Breach Report: September 2023 Edition

In the fast-paced world of technology and data-driven living, the month of August 2023 has brought yet another set of revelations and challenges in the realm of data breaches and cybersecurity. It has become abundantly clear that the battle to safeguard sensitive information in our interconnected digital landscape is far from over. August 2023 brought a series of incidents that not only underscore the evolving tactics of cyber adversaries but also emphasize the imperative for individuals and organizations to remain ever-vigilant in the face of data breaches.

MOVEit hack

In July 2023, the tech community was shaken by the revelation of the MOVEit data breach. However, the aftermath of this breach continues to unfold, with its impact steadily growing. To date, it has affected an alarming 58.6 million individuals and 1,132 organizations worldwide.

While experts are still uncovering the full scope of this breach, preliminary findings indicate that a significant amount of sensitive data has been breached. This includes personal data, financial records, and proprietary business information, thereby placing countless individuals and enterprises in a vulnerable position both financially and with potential damage to trust and reputation.

You can see the full 1132+ victim organizations that were affected here – https://konbriefing.com/en-topics/cyber-attacks-moveit-victim-list.html

Seiko Data Breach

Seiko, a Japanese watchmaker, disclosed a data breach occurred on August 10, 2023. The company said that it had discovered unauthorized access to one of its servers on July 28, 2023. The investigation by external cybersecurity experts found that some information stored on that server may have been compromised.

The types of information suspected to have been compromised include:

• Employee information, such as names, addresses, and Social Security numbers
• Customer information, such as names, addresses, and purchase history
• Business partner information, such as names, addresses, and contact information
• Financial information, such as credit card numbers and bank account numbers
• Intellectual property, such as product designs and trade secrets

The ransomware group BlackCat has claimed responsibility for the attack on Seiko. BlackCat is a relatively new ransomware group that has only been active since early 2023. The group is known for its aggressive tactics and has demanded millions of dollars in ransom payments from its victims.

Discord Data Breach

Discord.io, a third-party service that allows users to create custom invites to their Discord channels, suffered a data breach that exposed the personal data of over 760,000 users. The data leaked included usernames, email addresses, billing addresses (of a limited number of individuals), salted and hashed passwords (affecting a limited number of individuals), and their respective Discord IDs.

The breach was discovered on August 14, 2023, after a database containing the personal information of Discord.io users was put up for sale on the dark web. The hacker, who uses the alias ‘Akhirah’, shared four user records from the database as proof of the data’s authenticity.

Discord.io confirmed that the data was legitimate and that it had taken steps to secure its systems and prevent further breaches. The company also said that it was working with law enforcement to investigate the incident.

PurFood Data Breach

A home meal delivery service, disclosed a data breach on August 29, 2023. The company said that it had discovered unauthorized access to its systems on January 16, 2023. The investigation by external cybersecurity experts found that some information stored on the server may have been compromised.

The types of information that may have been compromised include:

• Names
• Social Security numbers
• Financial account information
• Payment card information
• Medical record numbers
• Medicare and Medicaid identification
• Health information
• Treatment information
• Diagnosis code
• Meal category and cost
• Health insurance information
• Patient ID number

PurFoods said that it is working with law enforcement to investigate the incident and that it is taking steps to protect its systems from future attacks. The company has also offered credit monitoring and identity theft protection services to affected individuals.

Alberta Dental Service Corporation Data Breach

The Alberta Dental Service Corporation (ADSC) data breach was a data security incident that occurred in August 2023. The breach affected approximately 1.47 million individuals who were enrolled in the Alberta government’s Dental Assistance for Seniors Plan, the Alberta government’s Low-Income Health Benefits Plans, and the Quikcard program.

The breach was discovered on July 9, 2023, when ADSC’s IT systems were found to be infected with ransomware. The ransomware encrypted some of ADSC’s data, making it inaccessible. ADSC paid a ransom to the hackers in order to get their data back.

The investigation into the breach found that the hackers had gained access to ADSC’s systems between May 7 and July 9, 2023. During this time, the hackers copied data from ADSC’s systems, including:

• Names
• Dates of birth
• Personal health numbers
• Dental benefits details
• Government-issued identification numbers
• Banking information for some Quikcard users

ADSC has notified the affected individuals and is offering them complimentary credit monitoring services.

Duolingo User data Posted on the Dark Web

An unknown party has released the scraped data of 2.6 million DuoLingo users on a hacking forum. While they offered the data set for sale in January for $1,500, it’s now been released on a new version of the Breached hacking forum for 8 site credits, worth only $2.13.

Duolingo, a language learning app, disclosed a data breach in January 2023. The data leaked included usernames, email addresses, profile pictures, and language learning progress.

The breach was caused by a security vulnerability in Duolingo’s API. The vulnerability allowed the attacker to access the personal information of users who had made their profiles public.

Even though most of the scraped data is publicly available, it gives cybercriminals yet another chance to correlate more information with a specific email address or name. Affected users should be wary of phishing emails making use of this information.

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