A major pirate streaming TV network that offered 2,600 channels and boasted more than 500,000 users was taken down with the combined effort of multiple European agencies. In other cybersecurity news, Google settled several lawsuits regarding their tracking services for the combined sum of $392 million.
Data breach strikes Russian scooter-sharing service
Late last week, a hacker posted a database for sale that contains 7.2 million customer records for the Russian scooter-sharing service Whoosh. The company has since confirmed that the stolen data is legitimate and includes personally identifiable information on millions of customers, and partial payment card data. The stolen database is currently listed for $4,200 in cryptocurrency and is believed to have been stolen during a cyberattack on Whoosh earlier this month.
Fangxiao phishing campaign operates 42,000 domains
Researchers have recently identified a massive phishing campaign that uses nearly 42,000 domains that impersonate popular brands to redirect users to malicious sites that generate ad-revenue for a China-based hacker group. The group behind this campaign, which has been dubbed Fangxiao, has been active since 2019, and consistently update their tactics and add new domains to their repertoire. This specific campaign appears to be focused on targets outside of China, since it uses WhatsApp for distribution though the app itself is banned in China.
Thales falls victim to second Lockbit attack in a year
The actors behind the prolific Lockbit 3.0 ransomware have published stolen data belonging to the French tech giant, Thales, making it the second data breach on the company in 2022. The leak was initially posted on October 31st, with all data being published on the November 7 deadline for the ransom to be paid. The actual contents of the leaked data are unclear, though officials for Thales have claimed that the data posed no significant threat to customers or daily operations of the company.
International law enforcement takes down pirate streaming network
With the combined efforts of Spanish police and EUROPOL, a major pirated TV streaming network with more than 500,000 users has been shut down. The streaming network offered 2,600 channels and over 23,000 movies available for their subscribers, which were being distributed through resellers all over Europe. Officials believe that this streaming network has been in operation since 2012 and creates new shell corporations to avoid detection.
Google pays $392 million in location data lawsuit
Following a 2018 report regarding Google’s nefarious location tracking methods, several lawsuits have been pushed against the company with a combined settlement of $392 million. The lawsuit states that while Google gives users the option to opt-in to location data tracking, the company already keeps records of web & app activity, which it does not obtain consent for. It will also require Google to notify users of all data collection procedures and inform them any time location tracking settings are about to be changed.
