Monster.com And USAJobs.gov Database Breached (Again), Private Data Of Millions Stolen
Monster.com, Massachusetts-based job seekers website, has lost a wealth of personal data belonging to millions of registered users after its database was illegally accessed. Customers names, birth dates, phone numbers, user IDs and passwords, email addresses, sex, and ethnicity have been stolen.
Monster.com strongly urges users to change their login credentials immediately and to be on the lookout for phishing emails. The breach prompted this warning from USAJobs, which looks to Monster to run its website.
The company has decided not to email or phone customers to warn them of the breach, spokeswoman Nikki Richardson said. The only warning is this undated advisory, which users will only know about if they happen to visit the company’s website.
It’s at least the third time Monster.com has put its users at risk after suffering a significant security breach. In August 2007, a Trojan-horse program used employer credentials to steal resume data belonging to about 1.3 million people. Within days, many users started receiving targeted phishing attacks that tried to trick them into downloading malicious software or take jobs as money mules for online crime gangs.
USAJobs.gov’s website said:
“We recently learned that the Monster database was illegally accessed and certain contact and account data were taken, including user IDs and passwords, email addresses, names, phone numbers, and some basic demographic data. The information accessed does not include resumes. The accessed information does not include – sensitive data such as social security numbers or personal financial data.”
People responsible for the breach were not able to access resumes, social security numbers, or personal financial data. The spokeswoman declined to say when or how the breach occurred and said it was still being investigated. Monster states in their release that members will be required to change their password soon.
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