Power Sellers Unite

elgato · Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 17240 Location: Texas

Epsilon, the world’s largest permission-based email marketing services company that serves TiVo users and many more, reported a breach in its security Friday, and the list of companies affected keeps on growing.

TiVo users had a rude awakening this morning, finding out the email address they’d given to TiVo as part of their account registration had been compromised.

According to SecurityWeek, Epsilon is currently disclosing even more companies whose email marketing lists had been compromised. Noticing the problem first with grocery retailer Kroger, Epsilon continues releasing company names that were affected by the breach. Here’s the list gathered so far:

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elgato · Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 17240 Location: Texas

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"Epsilon Breach a Treasure Trove for Phishing Attacks"

While the Epsilon data breach differs from other recent breaches in that there are no credit card numbers, social security numbers or corporate secrets, the threat of phishing attacks is all too real.

Security experts warned that users needed to be extremely vigilant and brush up on their security awareness to ensure they don’t fall victim to phishing emails expected after a data breach at a major marketing firm compromised several email lists.

Epsilon, a large email marketing services company with a roster of A-list clients, disclosed April 1 that attackers had stolen customer data belonging to several of its clients. While the extent of the breach is still under investigation, the initial list of affected companies reads like a “Who’s Who” of some of the largest companies, including several financial organizations, major hotel chains and big retailers.

The company warned that thieves might use the information to launch a phishing campaign to trick users out of more sensitive personal data.

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dticorp · Joined: 19 Aug 2006 Posts: 1760

Verizon customers exposed in massive U.S. data breach

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Customers of Verizon Communications had their email addresses exposed in a massive online data breach last week, according to an email to customers obtained by Reuters.

In what could be one of the biggest such attacks in U.S. history, a computer hacker penetrated the online marketer Epsilon, which controls the customer email databases for a broad swath of companies.

Customers of about 50 companies, from banks to retailers and hotels, had their names or email addresses exposed in the attack.

Rest of the article here:
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/verizon-customers-exposed-massive-u-data-breach-20110405-185259-545.html

http://www.DtiCorp.com/

HONEYWELL Thermostats and HVAC Controls

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elgato · Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 17240 Location: Texas

"Who is Epsilon and why does it have my data?"

If you didn't get an e-mail warning this week that your name and e-mail address were part of a database that was breached, consider yourself lucky, and unique.

E-mails from dozens of companies--including Citibank, Chase, Capital One, American Express, Walgreens, Target, Best Buy, TiVo, TD Ameritrade, Verizon, and Ritz Carlton--began flooding inboxes this week after a company called Epsilon announced that its system had been breached. Some people have reported receiving as many as four of these warnings.

Citibank is a household name, as are most of the brands on the list (which now reaches more than 55, according to this list on DataBreaches.net). But who exactly is Epsilon, and what is it doing with my data?

Sporting a tag line of "Marketing As Usual. Not A Chance," Epsilon is one of a growing number of companies that offer outsourced services to help companies attract and keep customers. In addition to offering e-mail marketing services and managing customer e-mail databases for clients, Epsilon monitors social networking and other sites to see what people are saying about a company, advises on markets to target, helps develop and maintain customer loyalty programs, and offers Abacus, "the world's largest cooperative database with over 8.6 billion consumer transactions and 4.8 billion business transactions" used for creating lists of prospective customers. The different data Epsilon sells includes age, profession, residence, ethnic information and political affiliation, according to a list published on the site of security firm Magmatic.

"The e-mail component of Epsilon is a small part of the company," Dave Frankland, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research, told CNET. "They are in the business of managing customer data and helping companies integrate that data and communicate more effectively with customers. So they have a lot more information than just e-mail addresses and names."

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dticorp · Joined: 19 Aug 2006 Posts: 1760

Email Breach: 8 Ways to Protect Yourself

Opt out of marketing data bases! Do it now! And don't give out any personal information in response to an email, even if it appears to come from your bank or favorite store.

Another major hacker attack last week exposed the names and emails of millions of consumers to cyber criminals — and you might be on the list. As a practical matter, you can't get out of all of the massive data banks that hold your personal data. Even the names of people who opted out might be retained. But you can do your best to minimize your risk.

The latest breach occurred at a company called Epsilon, a division of Alliance Data Systems Corp.

Rest of the article here:
http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/112498/email-breach-protect-data-moneywatch?mod=bb-creditcards

http://www.DtiCorp.com/

HONEYWELL Thermostats and HVAC Controls

http://www.ListFree.org/

ListFree.org - Free Press Release portal

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elgato · Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 17240 Location: Texas

"PayPal security chief on Epsilon breach and more (Q&A)"

CNET got a few minutes on the phone today with Michael Barrett, chief information security officer at online payment processor PayPal, and asked him his opinion on some current events in the world of security. Here are edited excerpts of the interview with the man responsible for making sure the personal and financial data of millions of PayPal customers and thousands of employees is secure.

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elgato · Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 17240 Location: Texas

"Epsilon and Other Data Breaches Prompt OTA Action"

The Online Trust Alliance (OTA) has announced what it is calling the “Security by design” framework and related guidelines in response to recent data breaches of email marketing firms Epsilon, Cheetah Mail, Silverpop, Return Path, and others who had customer data compromised.

“The OTA is reaching out to the email marketing community directly, to commit to updating now their security practices and to re-classify consumer email lists and related data as personal and private information,” a spokesperson for the OTA tells WebProNews.

For a little background, here is our coverage on the recent Epsilon incident, which affected customers of numerous big brands, including: US Bank, Capital One, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Best Buy, Kroger, TiVo, Walgreen’s, Target, Disney, Robert Half, Brookstone, Home Shopping Network, and McKinsey & Company.

Epsilon is actually part of the OTA, along with DigiCert, Internet Identity, Intersections, Lashback, MarkMonitor, Message Systems, Microsoft, PayPal, Publishers Clearing House, PreferenceCentral, ReturnPath, Securnia, Symantec, TRUSTe, TrustSphere, and Verisign.

“As the OTA is briefing members of Congress, we are encouraged by the level of support from leading marketers and online brands,” the spokesperson said. “We have invited and are looking forward to several trade and lobbying groups to join this effort.”

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elgato · Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 17240 Location: Texas

"Epsilon Data Breach to Cost Billions in Worst-Case Scenario"

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Epsilon-Data-Breach-to-Cost-Billions-in-WorstCase-Scenario-459480/