T-Mobile data breach puts 48 million people at severe risk of identity theft [updated]
T-Mobile data alienation puts 48 million people at severe risk of identity theft [updated]
Updated Aug. 27 with note from T-Mobile's CEO.
T-Mobile yesterday (Aug. 17) posted an update on its nigh recent data breach. While the visitor seems to be trying to reassure people, information technology's hard to put a positive spin on this news, which is about as bad as information technology gets.
T-Mobile said that only near 49 million current, sometime and prospective T-Mobile customers had their personal account information stolen — not 100 meg as a hacker claimed on an internet forum this past weekend.
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Regardless of how many millions of people had their T-Mobile information hacked, the effect is this: If y'all've e'er applied for a T-Mobile postpaid account, yous now have to assume that your proper name, address, appointment of birth and Social Security number have been fully compromised.
Yous accept to assume that anyone could use that information to open accounts in your name, sell your Social Security number, get an ID card in your name or even apply your proper noun while they're beingness arrested.
What you need to practise virtually T-Mobile's data breach
Hither'south what you lot need to practise if you lot have ever had or have ever applied for a T-Mobile postpaid account. (Nosotros'll get to T-Mobile prepaid customers in a minute.)
- Accept T-Mobile up on its offer of two years of McAfee ID Theft Protection Service.
- Put a fraud alert on your credit files with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. (Here's how.)
- Consider instituting a credit freeze with the Big Three credit-reporting agencies. (Here's how.)
- If you take a T-Mobile business relationship, change your T-Mobile account Pin and password.
- If yous take a T-Mobile account, take the offer to gear up Account Takeover Protection.
Lastly — and nosotros don't say this flippantly — consider dropping T-Mobile and switching to a wireless carrier that does a decent job of protecting your personal data. This is the fourth or 5th major T-Mobile data alienation in the past iii years, and if this company's track tape is whatsoever indication, it won't be the last.
All y'all need to steal someone'southward identity
In its post yesterday (Aug. 17), T-Mobile said that "we were able to verify that a subset of T-Mobile data had been accessed by unauthorized individuals."
Approximately 7.8 million current T-Mobile postpaid customers, and "simply over 40 million" former postpaid customers, as well as prospective customers who had applied for postpaid accounts, had their full names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers and driver's-license or ID numbers compromised.
The brilliant side — if at that place is one — is that at that place is "no indication that the information contained in the stolen files included any customer fiscal information, credit card information, debit or other payment information."
Nor were any "phone numbers, account numbers, PINs [or] passwords" compromised for these 48 1000000 people, although T-Mobile is recommending these people reset their PINs anyhow.
That'southward overnice, only the theft of Social Security numbers is a lot more serious. Information technology's non hard to cancel credit cards or reset PINs, while your Social Security number stays with y'all for life.
T-Mobile prepaid accounts also hit, simply not equally badly
However, that's not all. The company said "approximately 850,000" people with "agile" prepaid T-Mobile accounts had their "customer names, phone numbers and business relationship PINs" compromised. T-Mobile said it has reset all those PINs already.
These people did not have their Social Security numbers exposed, T-Mobile said. Nor does it mention dates of nativity or habitation addresses, two things that people with prepaid accounts may not have to provide when setting up an account.
If y'all have a T-Mobile prepaid business relationship, you should reset your Pin over again, likewise every bit your account password, just you're probably skillful regarding potential identity theft.
The company added that "no Metro by T-Mobile, erstwhile Sprint prepaid, or Heave customers had their names or PINs exposed."
Merely information technology didn't say anything about current or old Sprint postpaid, or current Dart prepaid, customers. It's possible that more bad news might come up out of this already awful data alienation.
Update: T-Mobile CEO posts amends
On Aug. 27, T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert put up a weblog postal service apologizing for the data breach (which affects 54 million people, not the 48 million of earlier) and announcing that the company had entered into "long-term partnerships" with enterprise-security firm Mandiant and global accounting firm KPMG to preclude future security mishaps.
"I want to say we are truly sorry," Sievert wrote. "We didn't live up to the expectations we have for ourselves to protect our customers."
Sievert said that nearly every electric current T-Mobile customer whose personal information was compromised in the breach has been notified, calculation that "we are also now working diligently to notify former and prospective customers."
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Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/news/t-mobile-breach-48-million-identity-theft
Posted by: turnagethadfice.blogspot.com
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