FNB App Data Breach | Data Loss

FNB under fire after major data breach on its app

Applying for a bond using your bank’s smartphone app is supposed to make life easier, but for some FNB clients the experience turned into a nightmare recently when customer information was accidentally leaked to fellow users from the FNB app.

FNB customers started to report a glitch while using the bank’s mobile app, which is now in its tenth year of use. When applying for a bond using the online platform, users were able to see the names, addresses, ID numbers, and other personal information of other banking clients displayed in the app.

This disturbing user experience sent shockwaves through the banking industry as clients question the safety of their data in the hands of financial institutions.

While many major companies have been in the news recently after falling victim to ransomware attacks, the FNB incident appears to be the result of a technical glitch on the bank’s part.

Did FNB act too slowly? POPIA regulators may say yes

The Protection of Personal Information Act makes it a legal requirement for companies to report the loss of confidential data, whether it occurred deliberately or by mistake.

However, when questioned by the media about the recent data leak, FNB stated that they were still in the process of reporting it to the authorities. If you’re not clear as to how your own business would respond in a similar scenario, here’s a quick rundown of the legal requirements.

Companies are required to report any loss of customer information to the Information Regulator as soon as possible. Fines of up to R10 million and jail sentence of after 10 years are the maximum penalties that can be applied if a violation is found to take place.
There are further legal requirements including a risk assessment, containing the breach, and informing all affected customers or other data owners in a timely manner.
If your business finds itself in the tricky situation of having a data leak or breach. It’s essential to report this to the Information Regulator without delay.

Avoid a data loss catastrophe with secure cloud storage

The latest FNB app data breach comes in the wake of an increasing number of data breaches from leading banks and South African organisations such as systems integrator Dimension Data, who only recently suffered another “limited” breach on their CMS platform.

Data leaks, breaches, and ransomware attacks are causing millions of Rand worth of damage to corporations across South Africa. In addition to being legally compliant, it’s also essential for you to back up all sensitive customer information using secure online storage.

Our encrypted cloud storage packages are the ideal way to keep your client data safe and prevent reputational damage if a leak occurs.

Location Enabled Apps Targeted | App Security

Drug Traffickers Target Location Enabled Apps

Do you know who your employees are ‘talking’ to on their devices, or even who your child is chatting with on their smartphone?

Social Media and digital platforms with location enabled apps such as WeChat, EskomSePush and Telegram, which allow users to find others in close proximity to them, are being used by cybercriminals to carry out a host of crimes, including drug dealing.

As the festive season approaches and holiday crimes increase, keeping personal information safe and making sure that your family does the same has never been more important.

Here’s what you need to know about the security threat posed by criminals that have access to your location data through location enabled apps.

EskomSePush and other apps – a tool for drug pushers

Load shedding has been a reality for South Africans since 2008, and the app EskomSePush has made life a lot easier for us during times of uncertain power supply. Unfortunately, the “find users near me” function, which was designed to let neighbours find and help each other during blackouts, is being used by drug dealers for nefarious purposes.

Children are often targeted by drug dealers to be used as moles and pick up or delivery agents because the law doesn’t allow a person under 12 years of age to be prosecuted for drug possession.

Law enforcement authorities have reported several incidents in which drug dealers used the app’s location function to communicate with nearby people – especially children – and rope them into their illegal dealings.

WeChat, a popular messaging app developed in China, may also be used by criminals to connect with people nearby and either attempt to scam them or involve them in illegal activities.

Platform owner interventions

Sadly, drug markets, child trafficking, document forgery and other such crimes have been digitally enhanced and even enabled by technology which remains a key driver of these illicit trades.

Platform owners are continuously updating and adapting their detection systems to deal with cryptic emojis and banned words, but with user behaviour constantly changing, the reality is that any real security would hamper the functionality of location enabled apps.

Stranger danger online: educate before it’s too late

Allowing your children to associate with strangers online poses an immediate danger to you and your family. Parents should be especially careful about giving their children access to mobile devices with apps like EskomSePush installed.

It’s essential to keep yourself and your family out of harm’s way by educating your children about the dangers of communicating with strangers online.

Keep your data safe with us

The risks involved with being connected to the internet continue to rise, and safeguarding your data is non-negotiable.

Keep your private information safe with our range of secure cloud storage packages that are ideal for families.

Meta Warns of fake apps | App Security

Meta warns of fake apps that ask you for your facebook passwords

Next time you download an app and sign in using your Facebook credentials, you could be giving cybercriminals access to your password and even worse, your online identity.

Meta- the parent company that owns Facebook – has been warning users to be vigilant about the apps they download after a spate of identity theft cases emerged in recent weeks.

Here’s what you need to know about these malicious apps and how to avoid becoming a victim of data theft.

login with facebook (at your own risk)

In late September and early October, Facebook users around the world were shocked to find out that their personal details had been stolen by cybercriminals.

Following further investigation, it was discovered that these incidents occurred when users downloaded certain suspicious apps from both the Google and Apple stores and used their Facebook credentials to sign in.
The majority of these incidents occurred with apps listed on the Google play store, but the Apple app store has also been found to contain malicious apps with the potential to steal personal information.

Meta hasn’t released the specific names of apps that were involved in identity theft cases but has issued a blanket warning for users to be careful about what they download.

how to stay safe in the app and play store

Whether you’re an Android or Apple user, you’ll need to exercise a lot of vigilance when downloading apps and signing in with your credentials.

Big name apps and games should be safe to use, but lesser-known apps, especially photo editors and location changes are all prime suspects for identity theft.
A good strategy to employ when downloading apps and signing in is to use email sign in as much as possible. It’s best to register a dedicated free account with a provider like Gmail that you only use to sign into apps.

As incidents of data theft increase around the world, having secure cloud storage has never been more important. To find out more about our range of encrypted data storage solutions, visit our website today.