Among the most common cyber attacks today are ransomware, leaks , and data breaches.
Most often, hackers . target large organizations or find exposed databases. However, the victims are actually the customers. Attackers breach systems and steal customer information, such as names, dates of birth, social security numbers, and more
However, exposing information to public databases can even be dangerous for the physical safety of those involved.
In Hackney, London, a breach , with far more devastating consequences than usual.
According to the Hackney Gazette, a family in the area adopted a child. Information about who they were and where they lived was not to be disclosed to the child's real parents.
However, during the adoption process in 2016, a mistake was made by Hackney Council's lawyer and the family's personal details were leaked. The exposed data included the couple's names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth and occupations.
The couple spoke to the council and the police and concluded that the leaked information could put risk their adopted child. So, they made the decision to change their residence and names to be safe.
Hackney Council acknowledged its mistake and awarded the couple $131,000 in compensation for the data breach, which helped them move to another home. It also apologized for this “human error.”.
The UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) was also notified, which acknowledged the significant damage caused to the family due to the data breach, but did not impose any other punishment beyond compensating the family.
This is a strange data breach, as there is no hacker. However, it shows that information leaks can have a serious impact on people's daily lives.
The staff of organizations that handle data must be very well trained, because as we saw above, a small mistake can force people to completely change their lives.
