From: InfoSec News (alertsinfosecnews.org)
Date: Tue Jan 06 2009 - 00:32:23 CST

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010503046.html

By Brian Krebs
Washingtonpost.com Staff Writer
January 6, 2009

Businesses, governments and educational institutions reported nearly 50
percent more data breaches last year than in 2007, exposing the personal
records of at least 35.7 million Americans, according to a nonprofit
group that works to prevent identity fraud.

Identity Theft Resource Center of San Diego is set to announce today
that some 656 breaches were reported in 2008, up from 446 in the
previous year. Nearly 37 percent of the breaches occurred at businesses,
while schools accounted for roughly 20 percent of the reported
incidents.

The center also found that the percentage of breaches attributed to data
theft from current and former employees more than doubled from 7 percent
in 2007 to nearly 16 percent in 2008.

"This may be reflective of the economy, or the fact that there are more
organized crime rings going after company information using insiders,"
said Linda Foley, the center's co-founder. "As companies become more
stringent with protecting against hackers, insider theft is becoming
more prevalent."

[...]

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