Georgia Tech recently notified almost 1.3 million people about a potential breach of sensitive data, and in some cases, including a social security number. Over a four month period, there was a vulnerable server that allowed people to enumerate records on a back-end database, allowing the exfiltration of sensitive information. While universities are seen as more open environments, they do have sensitive information they have to protect.

As people start thinking about completing the upcoming United States census online, security concerns have emerged. While there are unique threats to the Census because of the impact it has on budgeting and government, these concerns tell us a great deal about the security concerns of doing business online.

Imagine This: You have a precious and valuable treasure. You keep this treasure in your bedroom. Criminals come from all over the land, every night and day, laying siege to your home to steal this treasure. You have no gated community, no security patrol, no walls around your home, no doors or windows - and every fight with a criminal happens right there in your bedroom with your treasure just feet away. You know that one misstep, one lucky punch, and you lose your most precious treasure. It’s game over.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) on Capitol Hill in Washington on Dec. 19, 2017. (Carolyn Van Houten/The Washington Post)

One of ThreatSTOP's goals has been to help reduce spam on the Internet. Besides being a source of constant annoyance in email, spam, malspam, phishing and spear-phishing all pose large security risks. In recent years, spammers have also discovered a new prime target for spam: website commenting systems. 

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