Data Breaches Expose 75 Million Records

As might be imagined, most of these are of business records. Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) and Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) are the most visible of those. Over 63.5 million (84.6%) of the exposed records so far this year fall into this category, as do 195 breaches (34.3%). On the other hand, the largest number of breaches are of medical/health care files at 247 (43.5%) against a much smaller number of records exposed — only 7.4 million (9.5%)

With all the media coverage of bank and financial record breaches, the figures are extremely small. So far in 2014, breaches have numbered 23 (4.0%) and records exposed only 172,000 (0.2%).

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The Identity Theft Resource Center’s capacity to report breaches has grown recently:

The Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) today announced a partnership with IDT911 (IDentity Theft 911) for their corporate sponsorship of ITRC’s Breach List, supplemental reports and related research efforts involving data breach incidents.

Together, the two organizations will drive awareness regarding the growing number of data breaches and the potential risk of identity theft, which may plague a consumer for years to come.

“With support from IDT911, we will be able to further continue our efforts in collecting, tracking and understanding the complex issues surrounding the growing number of data breaches,” said Eva Velasquez, President and CEO, ITRC. “Heightening consumer awareness about the various types of risks posed by different types of data breaches is fundamental in helping consumers understand the value of personal identifying information,” Velasquez added.

The ITRC Breach List is a compilation of data breaches confirmed by various media sources and/or notification lists from state governmental agencies. This list is updated daily, and published each Tuesday. Breaches on this list typically have exposed information that could potentially lead to identity theft, including Social Security numbers, financial account information, medical information, and even email addresses and passwords.

“Breaches and the identity theft that inevitably flows from them are the third certainty in life,” said Matt Cullina, CEO, IDT911. “The ripple effect of breaches can ruin businesses and devastate consumers. The resolution services offered by IDT911 and ITRC assist identity theft victims every day and we’ve certainly seen the effects on consumers, like incorrect medical charts, inability to obtain a mortgage, and even an arrest. Many of these fraudulent activities trickle down from the flood of data on the black market after a breach.”

With what seems to be a hack a day, the new venture will have plenty to follow.

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