PROVIDENCE – Identity protection and breach services company CyberScout, which has offices in Providence, worked with the Identity Theft Resource Center on the 2018 End-of-Year Data Breach Report.
The report shows a decrease in U.S. data breaches but an increase in the exposure of sensitive consumer data, according to a news release. In 2018 there was a 129 percent increase in exposed consumer data that contained personally identifiable information, said CyberScout.
“The increased exposure of sensitive consumer data is serious,” said Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center. “Never has there been more information out there putting consumers in harm’s way.”
According to the report, another separate critical finding was the number of nonsensitive records that were compromised last year – 1.68 billion. While things such as email credentials are not considered sensitive information, most consumers use the same login credentials across platforms, making them vulnerable to cybercrime.
“Email continues to be the Achilles’ heel for the average consumer,” said CyberScout founder and Chairman Adam Levin in a statement. “The takeaway from this year’s report is clear: Breaches are the third certainty in life, and constant vigilance is the only solution.”
Susan Shalhoub is a PBN contributing writer.
