Cyberattack - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

Equifax Fined up to $700 Million for 2017 Data Breach

August 2, 2019

About two years ago, hackers breached the credit reporting agency Equifax and stole personal information from nearly 150 million people. Along with names and birthdates, the hackers also obtained social security and driver’s license numbers. As consumers responded in anger and disbelief that Equifax could be so negligent, government regulators immediately started investigating the agency. Last week the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced the results of that inquiry: Equifax agreed to pay a minimum settlement of $575 million that could Continue reading →

Regulation, Security, Cyberattack, Equifax, Credit, FTC, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Ransomware Attack Targets Baltimore

May 23, 2019

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In 2017 we looked at how the ransomware virus called “WannaCry” caused more than $8 billion in damage as it quickly infected hundreds of thousands of computers across the globe. Some victims even gave into the ransom that the virus demanded in order to regain access to their computers. Although a “kill switch” was eventually discovered in WannaCry’s code, the surprise cyberattack shocked many people in the business world. After all, securing a network against ransomware is extremely challenging, with Continue reading →

Security, Ransomware, Cyberattack, Baltimore, Maryland, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

2017’s Equifax Hack Affected Nearly 148 Million People

March 6, 2018

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Last year, hackers targeted the credit reporting firm Equifax in one of the biggest data breaches in history. While the company initially estimated the cyberattack had affected 143 million consumers, it increased that number by 2.5 million a month later. Then last week Equifax announced a further 2.4 million people had been harmed by the hack, placing the grand total somewhere in the neighborhood of 148 million. Unlike the vast majority of consumers who had their social security information leaked, Continue reading →

Regulation, Security, Crisis management, Cyberattack, Management, Equifax, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Cyberattack on Equifax Leaves 143 Million Consumers Compromised

September 8, 2017

NickelsMcHughMcHugh

Yesterday the credit reporting company Equifax announced that hackers had breached their security systems and stolen personal information from 143 million customers. Along with names and birthdates, the hackers also obtained social security and driver’s license numbers. These pieces of data are basically gold to identity thieves, allowing them to make purchases, borrow money and more all under the victim’s name. “This is about as bad as it gets,” said World Privacy Forum executive director Pamela Dixon. “If you have Continue reading →

Security, Yahoo, Cyberattack, Equifax, Credit, Personal Finance, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Bonus Chapter D: Personal Finance

Bitcoin Users Become Targets for Hackers

August 22, 2017

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When Bitcoin launched in 2008, a single unit of the mysterious cryptocurrency was worth just a little more than half a cent. Bitcoin’s value remained under a dollar for years afterward, leading many to wonder why anyone would invest in a strange new currency that couldn’t be controlled by any government or company. Besides being seemingly worthless, Bitcoin also operated through a decentralized network of computers whose owner was impossible to verify. This anonymity extended to Bitcoin’s users as well, Continue reading →

Currency, Security, Smartphones, Ethics, Mobile, Cyberattack, Bitcoin, Innovation

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 18: Financial Management, Chapter 20: Money and Financial Institutions, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Cyberattack on Ukraine Quickly Spreads Across the Globe

June 29, 2017

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On Tuesday Roman Klimenko headed into his Kiev accounting office for work just like he does every day. A few hours after he opened his tax preparation software, however, something went horribly wrong. “The screen became red,” said Klimenko. “A warning appeared, and everything on the hard drive was scrambled.” In a matter of moments he lost all of his filings from last year.

This same situation played out across tens of thousands of Ukrainian computers in that same instant. Continue reading →

Ransomware, Cyberattack, Operations Management, Ukraine, Global, Ethics, Security

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Ransomware Attack Does $8 Billion Worth of Damage

May 18, 2017

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Last Friday hackers launched a massive cyberattack that targeted hundreds of thousands of users and organizations in more than 150 countries. Using a “ransomware” virus called WannaCry, the malware infected computer systems by locking users out of their files and demanding money to set them free. Regardless of whether the user paid up or not, though, the virus was easily able to spread to other computers linked within the same network. Eventually one lucky researcher discovered a “kill switch” in Continue reading →

Cyberattack, Operations Management, Global, Ethics, Security, Ransomware

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media