A story broke overnight about an exposed MongoDB database revealing the PII of 1.8 million Chinese women.
The unusual aspect of this story was not that the data was exposed – but more because it identified which of the women were ‘breed-ready’.
Open MongoDB Databases Expose Chinese Surveillance Data.: 18 MongoDB databases with information generated by accounts on several online social services in China have been sitting on the web ready for plucking by anyone knowing where to look. It appears… https://t.co/Xrz8iXNMsh pic.twitter.com/PU11FR3z63
— Shah Sheikh (@shah_sheikh) March 4, 2019
Expert Comments below:
Steve Armstrong, Regional Director at UK & Ireland:
“The likely poor Chinese to English translation which has resulted in the ‘breed-ready’ phrase overlooks the far bigger story here – and that is the number one responsibility of all organisations to defend their data. Leaving individuals’ personal and sensitive information unprotected is both careless and irresponsible. The need for comprehensive cybersecurity measures is widely known today; however, many companies continue to display poor stewardship over the personal details belonging to customers, employees, and other parties. Unless organisations begin to respect the importance of protecting customer data, we will continue to see more companies making costly mistakes that have the potential to harm countless individuals.”
