LinkedIn Investigating Security Breach

LinkedIn is an important part of any plan for business marketing in Florida, and we highly recommend it to our clients on a daily basis. However, as of this morning they’ve proven that even they are not beyond the reach of enterprising criminals who troll the internet for fun and profit. Researchers at the U.K. internet security company Sophos say they have confirmed that a file posted on the web contains LinkedIn password hashes. These hashes are how websites store their member’s login information in a form other than just plain text, and although it has not been confirmed whether any information was actually obtained by the hackers, it is still highly recommended that all users change their passwords just to be on the safe side.

This is of particular concern when it comes to business marketing in Florida because many users may keep some confidential information in their accounts, which could cause major problems if they were to be accessed by an outside party. This is just another of many examples of why it’s so important to use unique passwords for each separate online account you have. Assuming the cyber-criminals have not only the passwords but also the associated emails that go along with them, and this is an assumption we have to make if we want to be safe, they can now punch that same combination in Amazon, Google, Facebook and countless other websites and have access to all of your information there as well.

Now, you may be wondering, ‘does this mean we shouldn’t be using LinkedIn anymore?’ and the answer to that is a resounding ‘No.’ We will not be changing our advice for Florida business marketing in the near future because of attacks like this. Every website is susceptible to attacks and most high profile sites have already been the victim of such an attack to some degree. This is why we can’t emphasize enough the importance of taking your digital security into your own hands by not reusing passwords across multiple accounts and limiting the amount of sensitive information you make available on the web.