Data breaches occur every day. You hear about them in your local community, national businesses and places you may frequent online. In a recent Gallup poll of 1,000 individuals only 21% indicated they have “a lot of trust” in the businesses that handle their personal information. Some 47% reported having “some trust.” The remainder of the group, roughly 30% said …
2016 National Association of Information Destruction Conference
Last week four members of the DataShield Team attended NAID’s annual conference in Orlando, FL. As AAA NAID Certified providers it is our job to keep up to date on everything that involves information security so you don’t have to. After attending many sessions and talking to colleagues from around the country and the globe there is no doubt that …
What’s Your Personal Data Worth on the Dark Web?
Recent data breaches involving health insurance giant Anthem Inc. and Community Health Systems, one of the nation’s leading operators of general acute care hospitals that operates in 29 states, has patients on high alert their personal information may be compromised. So just what is the cost for thieves to obtain your personal data including banking information, personal health records and even your Facebook account …
5 Ways Companies Can Avoid a Data Breach in 2015
A recent data breach at a Park ’N Fly in Oregon has the U.S. Secret Service called in to investigate. This could have a broad impact on consumers flying into and out of the state for years to come. Data breaches like these are becoming all too common and costly. In fact, in 2014, the Identity Theft Resource Center documented …
Second Largest Health Insurer is Latest Victim to Cyber Attack
Forty million U.S. customers of Anthem Inc are on high alert of possible identity theft after the health insurer reported a massive cyber security breath. The company said the “very sophisticated attack” involved one of its IT systems and hackers stole former and current customers’ birthdays, social security numbers and contact and employment information including income data. To read the …
Why It’s Never A Good Idea To Sell Your Cell Phone
If you sell your old cell phone and it gets into the wrong hands, what would someone find? A list of log-in passwords nestled in a page on your notepad? An app for your bank with your user name and password automatically saved? Or maybe you have an attached email account with copies of pay stubs, financial statements, court documents, …
Famous Data Security Breaches (and how they could’ve been avoided)
Most of us put our trust in the companies, both online and in person, that hold on to our secure information. Unfortunately computer hackers outmaneuver the security processes required by state and national laws and end up costing companies millions of dollars, but most importantly, confidential consumer information. The following famous data security breaches show vulnerabilities companies possess that allow …
Top Data Security Mistakes Most Companies Make
With most of a company’s information stored and used through technology, overexposure of private documents is becoming more common. State laws require businesses to secure their disposal of paper documents, digital files and inactive electronics. The following is a list of data security mistakes that can easily be avoided to better secure the confidentiality of a company. Weak or consistent …
Data Breach Notification Laws: What does it all mean?
Data breaches occur; it is a fact of life that we must live with. We can however prepare and minimize damage by following state laws that require data breach notifications. Currently, 46 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands require an organization to notify others when a breach has occurred. These state laws require …
The Threat is Real: 5 Recent Cases of Identity Theft
Any discussion of data and document security and paper shredding naturally involves talking about the dangers of identity theft. Unfortunately, it’s very common to think that “it will never happen to me,” but as we’ve shown in the past, identity theft is a real threat. In the interest of keeping up with the current threats to identities and personal data, …