What were the 7 biggest data breaches in history?

Throughout history, the world has witnessed many cases of data leaks that have left countless companies’ teams traumatized in one way or another. Recently, with the growing growth of life across technologies, more concerns about data protection are emerging.

According to a survey published by TIC Provedores earlier this year, 40% of Brazilian companies are already committed to having dedicated sectors for data protection within the company. Four years after the General Data Protection Law (LGPD) came into force, many related issues are still debated on a daily basis.

Therefore, remember some of the most emblematic cases that left their mark on history regarding data leaks. Entertainment!

7. Ministry of Health

In December 2020, when the pandemic was at its peak, the Brazilian press reported that the personal information of approximately 243 million Brazilians registered in the Unified Health System (SUS) or health plans was directly accessible via the internet due to a malfunction in the system. Management of data from the Ministry of Health.

Data that needs to be protected by direct authentication, e.g. His full name, CPF and address were completely vulnerable online. During the disclosures about the incident, it was hypothesized that there was a vulnerability in the code that allowed arbitrary access to the database.

6.Equifax

The year was 2017. Equifax, a company operating in the United States credit market, publicly announced that approximately 44% of its customers, primarily in the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada, had their data leaked due to the invasion of hackers. The company’s CEO at the time, Richard Smith, resigned from his position due to the pressure and legal proceedings that followed.

It is estimated that approximately 143 million people were affected by the data leak, which included credit card numbers, dates of birth and addresses. The company later announced that the attack was caused by a flaw in one of its applications.

5.Microsoft

One of the world’s largest software and computer products companies was also damaged by a data leak. In 2020, the information of approximately 250 million users was exposed due to a security vulnerability in Microsoft’s customer service platform. As reported at the time, users’ email and IP addresses, as well as their locations, were vulnerable.

According to the company, The leaked data was part of a 14-year report covering a specific period from 2005 to 2019. Microsoft also went public to explain further about the situation, assuring that the issue was resolved before criminals gained access.

4. Operation Deep Water

A leak detected by the company PSafe attracted the attention of the National Data Protection Authority (ANPD). In 2021, the data of approximately 223 million Brazilians was leaked. The fact that the number in question is higher than the registered population in our country shows that the leaked data also includes the information of the deceased.

While investigating its origins, arrest warrants were issued by Minister Alexandre de Moraes from the Federal Supreme Court (STF), in cooperation with the Federal Police. Two suspects were arrested in Minas Gerais and Pernambuco.

3. Marriott International

Another shocking leak occurred in 2018. The target was hotel chain Marriott International, whose leaked data reached 400 million users. The company reportedly received an alert in November of the same year stating that its booking database was vulnerable.

As the investigations progressed, it was revealed that data had been leaked from the company to criminal organizations since 2014. Customers’ full names, addresses, credit card numbers and other documents remained completely vulnerable for four years without anyone knowing.

2.Yahoo!

As we approach the end of the list, we need to talk about one of the biggest and most shocking data leak cases of recent times. In 2013, Yahoo! It was left vulnerable, with approximately 1 billion user accounts affected. But amid research, there are estimates confirming an even higher figure: 3 billion.

Bob Lord, who served as Yahoo!’s chief information security officer, argued that important personal data such as document numbers, phone numbers, birth dates and passwords were also exposed at the time. But luckily, bank information was not affected.

1.MOAB

Finally, one of the newest cases. In January this year, Ukrainian cybersecurity researcher Bob Dyachenko discovered MOAD, whose leaked data records amounted to an impressive 26 billion.

Dyachenko, working in partnership with the CyberNews website team, believes there is a lot of previously unexposed data such as passwords, phones and documents from users around the world.

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