TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

[Deepie]

Business leaders have called for urgent action to tackle cyber-crime after an attack on TalkTalk, calling it one of the biggest threats facing companies.


More ---> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34622754

E mail from Talk Talk

Your TalkTalk account number: xxxxxxxxx

Dear Mr Deepie We are very sorry to tell you that on Thursday 22nd October a criminal investigation was launched by the Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit following a significant and sustained cyberattack on our website on Wednesday 21st October. The investigation is ongoing, but unfortunately there is a chance that some of the following data may have been accessed: • Names • Addresses • Date of birth • Phone numbers • Email addresses • TalkTalk account information • Credit card details and/or bank details We are continuing to work with leading cyber crime specialists and the Metropolitan Police to establish exactly what happened and the extent of any information accessed. We would like to reassure you that we take any threat to the security of our customers’ data very seriously. We constantly review and update our systems to make sure they are as secure as possible and we’re taking all the necessary steps to understand this incident and to protect as best we can against similar attacks in future. Unfortunately cyber criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated and attacks against companies which do business online are becoming more frequent. What we are doing: • We are contacting all our customers straight away to let them know what has happened and we will keep you up to date as we learn more. • We have taken all necessary measures to make our website secure again following the attack. • Together with cyber crime experts and the Metropolitan Police, we’re completing a thorough investigation. • We have contacted the Information Commissioner’s Office. • We’ve contacted the major banks, and they will be monitoring for any suspicious activity on our customers’ accounts. • We are looking to organise a year’s free credit monitoring for all of our customers and will be in touch on this in due course. What you can do: • Keep an eye on your accounts over the next few months. If you see anything unusual, please contact your bank and Action Fraud as soon as possible. Action Fraud is the UK’s national fraud and internet crime reporting centre, and they can be reached on 0300 123 2040 or via http://www.actionfraud.police.uk • If you are contacted by anyone asking you for personal data or passwords (such as for your bank account), please take all steps to check the true identity of the organisation. • Change the password for your TalkTalk account and any other accounts that use the same password. • Check your credit report with the three main credit agencies: Call Credit, Experian and Equifax. Noddle also allows free access to your credit report for life. Please be aware, TalkTalk will NEVER call customers and ask you to provide bank details unless we have already had specific permission from you to do so. TalkTalk will also NEVER: • Ask for your bank details to process a refund. If you are ever due a refund from us, we would only be able to process this if your bank details are already registered on our systems. • Call you and ask you to download software onto your computer, unless you have previously contacted TalkTalk and agreed a call back for this to take place. • Send you emails asking you to provide your full password. We will only ever ask for two digits from it to protect your security. We understand this will be concerning and frustrating, and we want to reassure you that we are continuing to take every action possible to keep your information safe. If you have any questions, please visit http://help2.talktalk.co.uk/oct22incident for more information, or you can call us on 0800 083 2710 or 0141 230 0707. Yours sincerely, Tristia Harrison Managing Director, Consumer

[The Tech Clerk]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

No white wash again, 24 hours delay and people already reporting Bank accounts emptied!!

Talk Talk are libel as their system breached, they are libel!

[Deepie]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

Another email today ........... Your TalkTalk account number: xxxxxxxxx

Dear Mr Deepie We know it’s been a worrying and frustrating time since Wednesday’s cyber attack on our website. We’re doing everything we can to get to the bottom of what happened as soon as possible and to keep you updated. Our investigations are currently showing the following: • The number of customers affected and the amount of data potentially stolen is smaller than originally thought. Our website was attacked, but our core systems weren’t and remain secure. • On its own, none of the data that may have been accessed could be used to leave you financially worse off. • We don’t store unencrypted credit or debit card data on our site, so any card details which may have been accessed have the 6 middle digits blanked out. For example, it would appear as 012345XXXXXX6789. This means it can’t be used for financial transactions. • No My Account passwords have been accessed. • No banking details were taken that you won’t already be sharing with people when you write a cheque or give to someone so they can pay money into your account. We will continue investigating and promise to keep you updated as we know more. In the meantime, we strongly encourage that you: • Sign up to your free credit reporting service using this code: TT231. We have partnered with Noddle, one of the leading credit reference agencies, to offer 12 months of credit monitoring alerts for all customers. You can find out more at www.talktalk.co.uk/secure. • Stay vigilant - TalkTalk will NEVER call customers and ask you to provide personal details or passwords. Please take all steps to check the true identity of any organisation that calls requesting personal information. If you have any doubts, please call us on 0800 083 2710 or 0141 230 0707. We are sorry for the concern this week’s attack has caused, but want to reassure you that we are doing everything possible to keep your information safe. For more information, please visit: www.talktalk.co.uk/secure. Yours sincerely, Tristia Harrison Managing Director, Consumer

[5corpio]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

Cyber-hacking victims' fury as they are charged £245 to leave TalkTalk and calls grow for boss to step down

• Dido Harding is facing calls to stand down over the latest hacking scandal
• Customers are warned they face penalties for cancelling their contracts
• TalkTalk insisted it was only their website and not servers that were hacked
• Customers have expressed outrage over the firm's reaction to the scandal

There be plenty of News across the Spectrum for this internet/phone provider now - Source this is money

[Never-In-Doubt]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

Why is everyone acting surprised?

1. It's talk talk (who?)
2. No bank data was stolen - not enough to empty accounts anyway
3. It was only their website. Not their customer database.

Maybe now people will understand that you only get what you pay for. I've used Sky for over 25 years now. NEVER heard of any such nonsense let alone suffered it. Similar story with BT & Virgin.

But hey, people want to drink carlsberg from a Stella Chalice so what do you expect?

Talk Talk should now be shut for good. #wasteOfSpace

[Deepie]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

Police have made a second arrest, a 16-year-old boy from west London, in connection with the investigation into an alleged data theft from TalkTalk.


More ---> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34675235

[Deepie]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

Maybe now people will understand that you only get what you pay for.

Almost 2,000 Vodafone customers 'open to fraud'



More------> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34688851

[julian]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

I wonder if she writes her passwords on stickies and puts them on the side of the screen.

It amazes me how silly people are. When will they learn anything not screwed down will be taken, and anything 'locked' is seen as a valid challenge? Were these 'open' systems?

[5corpio]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

TalkTalk hack 'affected 157,000 customers'

TalkTalk has given more details of the cyber-attack on its website, saying nearly 157,000 of its customers' personal details were accessed.

More than 15,600 bank account numbers and sort codes were stolen, the company said. Customers should continue to protect themselves from scam phone calls and emails, TalkTalk added. This week police released a 16-year-old boy on bail who was the fourth person arrested in connection with the hack. Since news of the cyber-attack emerged, TalkTalk shares have lost about a third of their value......More here

[Deepie]

Re: TalkTalk attack: 'Urgent action needed' on cyber-crime

Your TalkTalk account number: xxxxxxxxxxx

Dear Mr Deepie I’m Dido Harding, Chief Executive of TalkTalk and I’m writing to update you following the recent criminal cyber attack on TalkTalk’s website. Ongoing investigations have confirmed that none of your personal information or sensitive financial data was taken. Even though we did not initially know the full extent of the attack, I knew we had to inform all of our customers so they could do everything possible to protect themselves whilst we established who exactly had been affected. So I took the decision to inform everyone by reporting the situation through the media. We immediately took our website offline and confirmed that our core systems were not affected. We brought in the Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit and a team of world-leading cyber security experts. The investigation is still ongoing, but a number of arrests have been made. We would advise you to remain vigilant and take all precautions possible to protect yourself from scam phone calls and phishing emails. TalkTalk takes steps to identify and block numbers used for malicious and nuisance calls and we will never ask for your billing details by email. For more advice on how to protect yourself visit our dedicated guide. You can also help protect yourself by signing up for your free credit reporting service with Noddle - one of the leading credit reference agencies using this code: xxxxx For more information about Noddle and the cyber attack please visit talktalk.co.uk/secure. TalkTalk takes the security of its customers’ data very seriously and I can assure you it is a key priority to ensure this does not happen again. Since the attack, we have further increased the level of protection of our systems, and we’re working with security experts to help keep your data safe. Whilst we continually review and update our systems, the threat of cyber crime is constantly evolving. We are committed to keeping you up-to-date with the latest advice on how you can stay safe online and offline, and we’re working with the Government, other businesses and security organisations to tackle this growing threat. We understand this has been an uncertain time. As a thank you for your understanding, we’ll be offering you a choice of free upgrades to your current TalkTalk package from December 1st. We’ll contact you with details in the next couple of weeks, but in the meantime you can find more information here. I’m sorry I had to write to you in these circumstances. I know we will need to work hard to earn back your trust after this incident and everyone here at TalkTalk is fully committed to doing that. Yours sincerely, Dido Harding Chief Executive Officer