A data broker (also known as an information product company) is an organization that makes money by collecting your personal information, analyzing it, and licensing it out to be used by other companies for things like marketing purposes.
Data providers gather data from many different sources to create a profile of who you are. This profile includes things like your interests, hobbies, demographics, and even the products you use. Generally, data broker companies only deal with customers to collect information. A few of the top data brokerage companies are Epsilon, Acxiom, and Experian, but there are many data brokerages worldwide that make a hefty profit from aggregating and distributing consumers’ personal data.
Read more…
Source: McAfee
Related:
- Virgin Media breach ‘linked customers to porn’
March 6, 2020
A customer database left unsecured online by Virgin Media contained details linking some customers to pornography and explicit websites. The researchers who first discovered the database told the BBC that it contained more information than Virgin Media suggested. Such details could be used by cyber-criminals to extort victims. Read more… Source: BBC News
- Brazilian security firm leaks more than 25 GB of client and staff data
March 6, 2020
A configuration failure on a server belonging to Orsegups Participações, a large Brazil-based holding company that controls seven businesses active in the property security sector, exposed a series of tax documents revealing clients’ contract values and staff information. The leak, investigated by ZDNet in partnership with Brazilian cybersecurity news website The Hack, has compromised more than 25 GB ...
- How to Identify and Control DoH On Your Network
February 25, 2020
Along with bandwidth, privacy and security are the major concerns shared by everybody and everything on the Internet. Engaging in man-in-the-middle style attacks, today hackers from cyber criminal organizations, state sponsored or masse surveillance interception, can intercept clear-text DNS lookups, track and monitor users’ activities or interfere with commerce and undermine confidence in the platform. ...
- Data Breach Occurs at Agency in Charge of Secure White House Communications
February 24, 2020
Hackers have compromised the Department of Defense (DoD) agency in charge of securing and managing communications for the White House, leaking personally identifiable information (PII) of employees and leading to concerns over the safety of the communications of top-level U.S. officials in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election. Reuters first reported the data breach at the Defense Information ...
- Details of 10.6 million MGM hotel guests posted on a hacking forum
February 19, 2020
The personal details of more than 10.6 million users who stayed at MGM Resorts hotels have been published on a hacking forum this week. Besides details for regular tourists and travelers, included in the leaked files are also personal and contact details for celebrities, tech CEOs, reporters, government officials, and employees at some of the world’s ...
- Nedbank says 1.7 million customers impacted by breach at third-party provider
February 14, 2020
Nedbank, one of the biggest banks in the South Africa region, has disclosed a security incident yesterday that impacted the personal details of 1.7 million users. The bank says the breach occurred at Computer Facilities (Pty) Ltd, a South African company the bank was using to send out marketing and promotional campaigns. In a security notice posted on its ...