Uber: Data Breach Affected 57 Million Users. Some Say A Post Breach Coverup, Too
Monday, November 27, 2017
Uber is in the news again. And not in a good way. The popular ride-sharing service experienced a data breach affecting 57 million users. While many companies experience data breaches, regulators say Uber went further and tried to cover it up.
First, details about the data breach. Bloomberg reported:
"Hackers stole the personal data of 57 million customers and drivers... Compromised data from the October 2016 attack included names, email addresses and phone numbers of 50 million Uber riders around the world, the company told Bloomberg on Tuesday. The personal information of about 7 million drivers was accessed as well, including some 600,000 U.S. driver’s license numbers..."
Second, details about the coverup:
"... the ride-hailing firm ousted its chief security officer and one of his deputies for their roles in keeping the hack under wraps, which included a $100,000 payment to the attackers... At the time of the incident, Uber was negotiating with U.S. regulators investigating separate claims of privacy violations. Uber now says it had a legal obligation to report the hack to regulators and to drivers whose license numbers were taken. Instead, the company paid hackers to delete the data and keep the breach quiet."
Geez. Not tell regulators about a breach? Not tell affected users? 48 states have data breach notification laws requiring various levels of notifications. Consumers need notice in order to take action to protect themselves and their sensitive personal and payment information.
Third, Uber executives learned about the breach soon thereafter:
"Kalanick, Uber’s co-founder and former CEO, learned of the hack in November 2016, a month after it took place, the company said. Uber had just settled a lawsuit with the New York attorney general over data security disclosures and was in the process of negotiating with the Federal Trade Commission over the handling of consumer data. Kalanick declined to comment on the hack."
Reportedly, breach victims with stolen drivers license information will be offered free credit monitoring and identity theft services. Uber said that no Social Security numbers and credit card information was stolen during the breach, but one wonders if Uber and its executives can be trusted.
The company has a long history of sketchy behavior including the 'Greyball' worldwide program by executives to thwart code enforcement inspections by governments, dozens of employees fired or investigated for sexual harassment, a lawsuit descrbing how the company's mobile app allegedly scammed both riders and drivers, and privacy abuses with the 'God View' tool. TechCrunch reported that Uber:
"... reached a settlement with [New York State Attorney General] Schneiderman’s office in January 2016 over its abuse of private data in a rider-tracking system known as “God View” and its failure to disclose a previous data breach that took place in September 2014 in a timely manner."
Several regulators are investigating Uber's latest breach and alleged coverup. CNet reported:
"The New York State Attorney General has opened an investigation into the incident, which Uber made public Tuesday. Officials for Connecticut, Illinois and Massachusetts also confirmed they're investigating the hack. The New Mexico Attorney General sent Uber a letter asking for details of the hack and how the company responded. What's more, Uber appears to have broken a promise made in a Federal Trade Commission settlement not to mislead users about data privacy and security, a legal expert says... In addition to its agreement with the FTC, Uber is required to follow laws in New York and 47 other states that mandate companies to tell people when their drivers' license numbers are breached. Uber acknowledged Tuesday it had a legal requirement to disclose the breach."
The Financial Times reported that the U.K. Information Commissioner's Office is investigating the incident, along with the National Crime Agency and the National Cyber Security Centre. New data protection rules will go into effect in May, 2018 which will require companies to notify regulators within 72 hours of a cyber attack, or incur fines of up to 20 million Euro-dollars or 4 percent of annual global revenues.
Let's summarize the incident. It seems that a few months after settling a lawsuit about a data breach and its data security practices, the company had another data breach, paid the hackers to keep quiet about the breach and what they stole, and then allegedly chose not to tell affected users nor regulators about it, as required by prior settlement agreements, breach laws in most states, and breach laws in some international areas. Geez. What chutzpah!
What are your opinions of the incident? Can Uber and its executives be trusted?
Just awful: Uber, Equifax and lord knows how how many other business entities act with indifference, even impunity, when their incompetence affects others. But why not? The regulatory state of our government has been demonized, demoralized and denuded of resources by one half of our polity.
Posted by: Nicodemus Boffin | Wednesday, November 29, 2017 at 01:46 AM
Great post! Just keep up doing this wonderful job. Warming regards.
Posted by: Pete | Friday, May 18, 2018 at 04:16 PM
Pete:
Thanks for the kind words. I do my best. The good news is that there is so much to write about. The bad news is that there is so much to write about.
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Friday, May 18, 2018 at 04:36 PM