Latest Data Breach: Capital One
In our technological climate, it’s not surprising to learn about another data breach. It seems that many times a year, multiple manufacturing, financial, insurance, and healthcare industry leaders experience a breakdown in their security frameworks. As a result of a data breach or accidental leak, the sensitive information of millions of people becomes compromised. That information, which likely includes a person’s social security number, address, birthdate, and even bank credentials, circulates on the internet often times without us knowing. It’s important that business owners partner with a HITRUST CSF, SOC 2 Type 2 certified company to ensure that clients’ information stays protected.
Capital One Gets Hacked
As recently as July 29, the banking giant Capital One experienced “one of the biggest data breaches ever,” according to CNN Business writer Rob McLean. The hacker has since been identified as Paige Thompson, who accessed 100 million Capital One customers’ accounts and credit card applications. Capital One has ensured the public that Thompson did not publish customers’ information on the internet, they claim 99% of the social security numbers compromised in the hack are not in further danger. At the same time that this might be reassuring, it’s still alarming that the “breach has affected around 100 million people in the United States and about 6 million people in Canada.”
The hacker was able to access the information of over 100 million people total by manipulating Amazon Web Services servers. Specifically, she gained “access by exploiting a misconfigured web application firewall” based on court documents published by the Justice Department. These faulty and ill-addressed security frameworks opened the door for one of the biggest hacks in history, and Capital One is now experiencing the immense consequences: it’s stock has sunk by as much as 5% this week.
According to the New York Times, “Capital One has faced security breaches before, and they are a constant, and costly, threat for the financial industry.” When a company deals with information as delicate as identity credentials, financial reports, and persona details, it needs to ensure that it has the necessary security controls to protect that data. Otherwise, like in the case with Capital One, a company can face intense and potentially irreparable consequences.
How Innovative Data Security Can Save Your Business
Capital One’s massive hack is not an isolated incident. More and more, businesses in financial, insurance, and healthcare industries face unexpected and countless threats on delicate client information. In a world where data is becoming increasingly valuable, it’s never been more important to protect sensitive information. Working with a company that is HITRUST certified, you can employ effective, comprehensive, and flexible framework of prescriptive and scalable security controls. What this means is that you’ll be prepared to mitigate any kind of disastrous data breach because of your solid, stalwart security measures.
United Mail is both HITRUST CSF and SOC 2 Type 2 certified, which means that we adhere to all financial and data management compliance standards established by the federal government. Moreover, these certifications prove that we prioritize the privacy and confidentiality of sensitive data. For projects of all sizes, trust United Mail to store, print, or send communications that contain private or delicate information.
By: Michael Phillips
