Latest Yahoo Data Breach Involves One Billion Accounts – Biggest Hack In History

PALO ALTO, CA. – Yahoo Inc. said on Wednesday that it has identified a new breach that occurred in August 2013 and involved data associated with more than one billion user accounts, double the number affected in a different breach disclosed in September.

Yahoo said it believed the latest incident was likely distinct from the breach disclosed in September, when it said information associated with at least 500 million user accounts was stolen in 2014.

The 2014 breach was believed to be the world’s biggest known cyber breach by far. The company, which is being acquired by Verizon Communication Inc for $4.83 billion, said an unauthorized third party had stolen the data in the latest breach and that it was working closely with law enforcement.

The company said it has not been able to identify the intrusion associated with the theft. Yahoo said the stolen user account information may have included names, e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, hashed passwords and, in some cases, encrypted or unencrypted security questions and answers.

Payment card data and bank account information were not stored in the system believed to be affected, the company said.

Meanwhile, a new study determined that data breaches “unsettle” American consumers and result in negative brand perception.

Customers who are affected by data breaches suffer a significant loss of trust, and this is particularly true of men. According to the survey results, nearly one in three Americans (29 percent) said it would take them several months to begin trusting a company again following a data breach. Twenty-two percent said it would only take them a month to forgive, but 17 percent of men and 11 percent of women said their trust would be permanently lost. Men (16 percent) are also more likely to switch to a competitor following a data breach than are women (6 percent).

“This is no surprise to me,” said Ebba Blitz, CEO of Alertsec. “People’s personal information is, in many ways, the key to their financial and psychological well-being. When a company has allowed their customers’ data to fall into the hands of criminals, the resulting lack of trust is difficult to repair.”

In terms of brand perception, when a company suffers a data breach, 35 percent of the respondents said this reflects sloppiness, 32 percent said it reflects a lack of professionalism, and 26 percent said it makes the company a target for lawsuits.

Data breaches unsettle

Ninety-seven percent of those surveyed said a data breach affects them in some way, even if they have no direct affiliation to the company whose data has been breached.

When Americans learn a company has had a data breach, 67 percent check to see if their information or identity has been compromised, and 35 percent worry about their information, even if they are not directly connected to the company. Twenty-nine percent said data breaches prompt them to focus on improving their own online security.

Only three percent of Americans reported feeling unfazed by data breaches.

Men generally have a stronger reaction to data breaches than do women:

When asked which actions companies should take after suffering a data breach, 81 percent of those surveyed said the company must tell everyone affected, and 72 percent suggested the company immediately invest in new encryption technology.