Just before LinkedIN reached it’s ten year anniversary, the business- oriented social network was hacked by Russian cybercriminals. On June 5th 2012, nearly 6.5 million LinkedIN account passwords were stolen from a weak security system and outdated form of cryptography. Experts discovered that LinkedIn had been using commonly cryptographic algorithm called SHA-1 to protect user passwords. Although still widely used, SHA-1 codes do not offer sufficient security and result in major data breaches.
Without having a secure network, hackers are able gain unauthorized access to profiles and other private information. Large social networks continue to suffer from cybercrime because of this. Go-gulf reported 1 and 10 social network users have been victims of hacks and scams found on social media platforms. Because a social network has a significant number of newly joined users each year, they needed update their safeguards regularly. Of course, Linkedin did not manage their security properly. Therefore, the company released a statement that promised to secure a broader and efficient network to keep their data protected.
As the company began taking cybersecurity more seriously, the company developed Intro one year later. The new software product embeded public LinkedIn profiles into emails received by iPhone users. Days after the launch of Intro, LinkedIn received an enormous amount of criticism for the apps lack of security. In reality, the service created a greater risk for more password hacks and identity theft within their network.
Almost four years later, LinkedIn still faces the same security issues from the attacks that occured in 2012. In fact, the current amount of stolen usernames and passwords has increased to over 117 million. The Latest reports suggest that hackers were caught selling stolen data to an illegal marketplace based outside the U.S. called “The Real Deal.” The company intended to sell subscriptions for 5 Bitcoins (roughly $2,200) to individuals interested in searching their publicly available database collection. After this information was received by LinkedIn, they released this statement, “We have demanded that parties cease making stolen password data available and will evaluate potential legal action if they fail to comply. As a result, we have sent a C&D to LeakedSource,” At this time, LinkedIn is proactively seeking legal action against the company until they agree to cease the stolen passwords from the database.
Protecting personal information and business accounts begins with taking proper security precautions. Instead of fighting a constant battle against cyberhackers, implement effective solutions and invest in top cybersecurity for your infrastructures. ThreatVector by The LCO group, one of New York’s biggest threat detection networks, understands the seriousness of hacking and cybercrime. They provide the best strategies and perform the necessary duties to ensure networks and systems are fully protected. With continuous monitoring, Threat Vector by The LCO Group is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to meet your cybersecurity needs.
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