Adobe hack: 38 million users affected, not 3 million

Adobe hack: 38 million users affected, not 3 million

Software company behind Photoshop and Acrobat admits security breach a month ago was far bigger than first reported

Reuters

theguardian.com, Wednesday 30 October 2013 03.38 EDT    

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/oct/30/adobe-hack-38m-users-photoshop-acrobat?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487

Adobe Systems has said that the scope of a cybersecurity breach disclosed nearly a month ago was far bigger than initially reported, with attackers obtaining data on more than 38 million customer accounts.

The software maker also said that hackers had stolen part of the source code to Photoshop editing software that is widely used by professional photographers.

Adobe disclosed the breach on 3 October, saying attackers took credit card information and other data from nearly 3 million customers' accounts.

The company also said that the hackers accessed an undisclosed number of Adobe IDs and encrypted passwords that were stored in a separate database. On Tuesday, it revealed that about 38 million records from that database were stolen.

On O3 October, the company also reported that the attackers stole source code to three other products: Acrobat, ColdFusion and ColdFusion Builder.

Adobe spokeswoman Heather Edell said the software maker believes the attackers also obtained access to "many invalid Adobe IDs, inactive Adobe IDs, Adobe IDs with invalid encrypted passwords and test account data."

She said the company is still investigating to determine how much invalid account information was breached and is in the process of notifying affected users.

Even though the company believes the stolen passwords were encrypted, the attackers may have been able to access them in plain text by one of several methods, including breaking the algorithm that Adobe used to scramble them, said Marcus Carey, a security researcher and expert on cyber-attacks, who formerly worked as an investigator with the National Security Agency.

They could likely use those passwords to break into other accounts because many people use the same passwords for multiple accounts, he said.

"This is a treasure trove for future attacks," Carey said.

Adobe spokeswoman Heather Edell said that the company was not aware of any unauthorised activity on Adobe accounts as a result of the attack.

However, Edell said she could not say whether stolen credit cards or passwords had been used to launch follow-on attacks against Adobe customers or conduct other types of cybercrimes.

"Our investigation is still ongoing," she said. "We anticipate the full investigation will take some time to complete."

Adobe Systems

Shantanu Narayen is the president & CEO for Adobe Systems Incorporated, and a board member for the Haas School of Business.

Note: Robert D. Haas was a board member for the Haas School of Business, and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Richard C. Blum is a board member for the Haas School of Business, an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and married to Senator Dianne Feinstein.

Laura D'Andrea Tyson is a professor at the Haas School of Business, and was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

George Soros is the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Cyrus F. Freidheim Jr. is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

R. Eden Martin is the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and counsel at Sidley Austin LLP.

Michelle Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.

Barack Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP.

Newton N. Minow is a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP, and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

Commercial Club of Chicago, Members Directory

http://commercialclubchicago.org/members/e.html

Please note: This link for the members of the Commercial Club of Chicago can no longer be found.

Robert S. Osborne is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and the EVP & general counsel for Booz Allen Hamilton.

Booz Allen Hamilton is a contractor at the National Security Agency (NSA).

Edward Snowden was an employee at Booz Allen Hamilton, and leaked information about the National Security Agency (NSA).

National Security Agency (NSA) was a grant recipient from the Microsoft Corporation.

William H. Gates III is the co-founder & chairman for the Microsoft Corporation, and a co-chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Ann M. Fudge is the U.S. program advisory panel chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Robert D. Haas was an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and a board member for the Haas School of Business.

Shantanu Narayen is a board member for the Haas School of Business, and the president & CEO for Adobe Systems Incorporated.