AT&T recently disclosed a data breach that exposed users' personal information to the dark web.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (What's the technology?) — AT&T is the latest company to deal with a breach of its customers' personal information.
As data breaches become more frequent, you may be wondering what you can do to protect yourself as a consumer.
Troy Hunt is one of the most respected names when it comes to privacy, passwords, and data breaches. Hunt said from his home in Australia that the AT&T data breach, which included social security numbers, was more alarming than many other data breaches. Next, get their name, phone number, and address. Unfortunately, these are all the basic elements of theft.
“We're seeing headlines that say it's on the dark web. It's not the dark web. It's the transparent web. It's a place you can access with a regular browser. Thousands, if not tens of thousands of people have access to all this data. We’re going to have it,” Hunt said.
And there's not much the victim can do about it now.
“We can't change our date of birth. Changing our social security number is just a nightmare. So we have to grapple with the fact that our data is out there and we can never get it back,” Hunt said. he said.
Hunt added that most people don't take steps to protect their data until they become a victim. And since we've all encountered a data breach at some point, it's important to take action now.
Hunt says protecting against identity theft and fraud is a good step to protect your privacy. These cost about $100 a year.
It also helps to have a good, strong, and unique password for each account.
AT&T is contacting all current and former customers whose information was included in the breach. It will also reset the passcodes for those accounts.
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