The cybersecurity company Cybele has obtained more than 500,000 Zoom App identifiers on the Dark Web for a ridiculous price of around one cent per unit. Find out how to prevent your password from being obtained and sold by a hacker.
Zoom videoconferencing software allows you to organize remote meetings directly from a web browser. In the past few weeks, it is likely that you have heard of this tool.
For good reason, faced with the containment put in place to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Zoom encounters a massive gain in popularity. Its ease of use explains why many companies turn to this solution in this emergency and unforeseen situation.
Companies are not the only ones to turn to Zoom. Journalists, teachers, coaches, families or even churches use it to keep in touch despite the ban on meeting physically. It goes without saying that this is great news for the company that produces this software. Unfortunately, this brutal growth did not go off without a hitch.
First, many Zoom meeting organizers had the unpleasant surprise that strangers joined their videoconferences to wreak havoc. The phenomenon is so common that English speakers have invented a word to designate it: the “ZoomBombing“.
Subsequently, Zoom also had to explain the transfer of data and calls from its users to Facebook, then to servers based in China. According to the firm, it was an accident. However, some experts fear that this software will be used by China.
Recently, a new problem has surfaced. Due to the negligence of Zoom users, their passwords are sold on the Dark Web.
A cybersecurity company called Cybele managed to acquire more than 530,000 Zoom identifiers from a Russian hacker for a ridiculous price of around a penny for 10 passwords.
The explanation is that many new Zoom users make the mistake of re-using the same password as on other services. However, if the services in question have already been pirated or victims of a data leak, the passwords are in the possession of hackers who only have to use them again on Zoom.
In order to prevent your Zoom identifiers from being sold on the Dark Web, it is therefore essential not to re-use your passwords. Use a unique password for each account you create on a web service. To simplify your task, you can turn to a password manager. This type of tool allows you to create passwords and memorize them automatically.
In this context where Zoom is used on a massive basis from time to time, warn your friends, family and colleagues not to make this error. If you are a business owner, it is essential to ask your employees to respect this golden rule.
For good reason, Zoom is used for videoconference calls. The information that can be exchanged during these calls can be highly confidential to your business. An intrusion during a remote meeting could have disastrous consequences for your activity.
Also Read: Protecting Your Devices: 7 Cyber Security Threats Every Small Business Owner Should Know
