A group of hackers calling themselves Lulz Security have gained access to a server belonging to the Fox Broadcasting network, and published details of hundreds of employees usernames and passwords on the net.
The hackers, who claim to have also been responsible for stealing personal information about X Factor contestants from the TV network earlier this month, posted a message on the internet that didn’t disguise their dislike for Fox:
Dear Fox.com,
We don't like you very much. As such, we cordially invite you to kiss our hand-crafted crescent fresh asses.
Remember that time we leaked all your X-Factor contestants? [LINK]
Well now we're leaking some more of your junk. We invite the Internet to ravage the following list of emails and passwords (from a database within Fox.com) - Facebook, MySpace, PayPal, whatever you can get your hands on. Take from them everything. Remember to proxy up, or tunnel like a pro!
In addition, Lulz Security gained access to the Twitter accounts of some Fox affiliates, presumably using the stolen password information, and posted embarrassing messages:
Furthermore, some Fox employees found that their LinkedIn pages had been defaced:
Clearly, it’s important for Fox employees to change their passwords if they haven’t already done so. But more than that, this hack’s impact underlines the importance of using different passwords on every website that you access, and making sure that your passwords are not dictionary words or easy to crack or guess.
About a third of computer users are using the same password for every website they access according to research conducted by Sophos.
Once one password has been compromised, it’s only a matter of time before the fraudsters will be able to gain access to your other accounts and steal information for financial gain.
Watch a video I made about how to choose a more sensible password:
(Enjoy this video? You can check out more on the SophosLabs YouTube channel and subscribe if you like)
Of course, Fox employees might not have to be changing their passwords quite so urgently if their details had been better secured in the first place with encryption and layered security systems.
Let’s not forget, it’s not just individuals’ corporate identities which have been put at risk by this hack, but also their personal online and financial lives too.
