It’s not rare for companies, individuals and governmental agencies to suffer security breaches, but when businesses shifted to remote working situations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw a dramatic rise in them. Cybercriminals exploited the situation and launched highly sophisticated data breaches in a number of different industries.
As we look back on 2020, there are unfortunately more than we can count. Here are a few of the bigger ones, but keep in mind that for every large hack, there are thousands of hacks on smaller businesses:
SolarWinds Hack
An alleged hack from Russia, experts say this unique data breach is one of the largest spying operations in U.S. history, and we’re still not sure of the extent. Instead of breaking into individual organizations, hackers breached SolarWinds, an Austin, Texas based company with a large customer base. The Pentagon, intelligence agencies, nuclear labs and Fortune 500 companies use the SolarWinds software.
Earlier this year, the social media platform suffered a brazen online attack when three teenagers managed to gain access to the Twitter accounts of high profile individuals — including Barack Obama, Elon Musk, Bill Gates and more.
Zoom
Zoom became one of the most used applications for virtual conferencing during the pandemic. Zoom account login credentials were sold and given away, along with personal meeting URLs and HostKeys from financial institutions, banks, colleges and other organizations. Many remote workers fell victim to unwanted guests, or “Zoom bombers.”
MGM Grand Hotels
MGM Resorts learned they had a massive data breach that impacted nearly 142 million hotel guests. Compromised information included names, home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and dates of birth. Although no financial, password data or payment card information was stolen, it did impact big names such as Justin Bieber, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and many governmental officials.
Microsoft
Microsoft’s data breach impacted 250 million customer entries that included email addresses, IP addresses and support case details. Fortunately, customer names and other personally identifiable information were not exposed.
Magellan Health
Using malware to steal employees’ login credentials, hackers were able to gain access to this health care giant’s employee personal information, ID numbers and sensitive information including W-2s, social security numbers and Taxpayer ID numbers.
Marriott
Marriott’s March data breach impacted more than 5.2 million hotel guests who used the company’s loyalty application. The breach included personal information such as names, birthdates, travel information, loyalty numbers and telephone numbers.
Data security should be top of mind no matter who you are or what size your business is, and SFM Insurance can bring you peace of mind. We are an independent insurance company dedicated to keeping you safe and protected in your home and online.
Offering cyber insurance in addition to our other policies, SFM Insurance is committed to protecting your assets. Contact us today if you would like more information about our cyber security policies, or to schedule a free consultation with our experienced agents. For more tips and our latest updates, visit us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn!
