Raise your hand if you have ever heard of National Public Data (NPD). Not exactly a household name. They are a company that collects and sells personal data used by private investigators and other organizations for background checks. They have been hacked. It has been reported that this breach includes about 2.9 Billion records. These records include personal information of every individual in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. The hackers are attempting to sell this file for US$3.5 Million. The information includes names, addresses, social security numbers for US citizens and other personal information that would assist someone in creating a false identity.
How Long Has This Been Going On
According to various investigations into this attack, hacking of the NPD network began in December of 2023. The actual leaks are suspected to have begun in the summer of 2024. This begs the question, how did malicious code infiltrate the network for six to eight months before the company became aware of the activity?
According to a University of Maryland study, hackers attack every 39 seconds. It takes an average of 9.5 hours to obtain malicious access to a target's network. However, it takes the affected organization an average of 197 days to identify and 69 days to contain a security breach. This tracks fairly closely with the NPD breach.
The lesson here is that constant, persistent and accurate visibility is absolutely necessary on every link in every network. The longer malicious code festers in a network, the potential for damage and liability increases dramatically.
Liability
National Public Data, headquartered in Florida, USA is currently being investigated by the US House Committee on Oversight and Accountability and at least three states over this breach. Seven class action lawsuits have been filed. According to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), individuals who have had their personal information stolen are eligible to file a claim for between £1,000 and £42,900. With victims of this data theft in the hundreds of millions, it is possible that the company may not survive this event.
Beyond the Firewall
Many organizations are using multiple monitoring and security tools that provide real time multi-layer protection from malicious attacks. Firewalls are, of course, a necessary tool for all networks. However, beyond the initial protection that firewalls provide, other network security tools are available. Network security tools aim to prevent devices, technologies, and processes from unauthorized data access, identity theft and cyber threats. There are many such devices that can be layered to provide robust protection from attacks.
The one common thread among these devices is that they need to be connected to network links to see and analyse network traffic. The preferred method of connecting these devices to network links is through TAPs. TAPs can be connected to links providing safe and reliable port access to various monitoring and security tools. Since the National Packet Data breach was so large in nature, let's look at how a complex, high bandwidth network might connect multiple tools for increased security.
Network Critical Visibility Options
Network Critical is a global visibility company providing TAPs and Packet Brokers for small business, government, financial, enterprise, healthcare and other networks. Their products provide permanent, complete and accurate visibility and access to a variety of network protection tools.
Passive Optical TAPs can safely connect multiple tools at speeds from 1Gbps to 400Gbps. Beyond the passive fiber options, there is a complete portfolio of intelligent TAPs and Packet Brokers with advanced features that not only connect tools but assist in their efficient operation. Hybrid TAP/Packet Brokers offer space, power and budget efficiency for organizations requiring advanced tool management with limited rack space availability.
One example for large complex networks is the SmartNA-XL hybrid, modular TAP/Packet Broker. With five slots to integrate a wide variety of ethernet TAP modules in a modular 1RU chassis, the SmartNA-XL safely connects tools while protecting network reliability and availability. Even if power fails, live network traffic will continue to flow. The SmartNA-XL can accommodate speeds from 1Gbps to 40Gbps along with a list of sophisticated features. Some key features include:
Zero latency added to network
Advanced packet manipulation: Packet slicing, Header Stripping and Payload Masking
Passive Optical Modules, Bypass 10 and Fastfail copper Gigabit modules
Hot Swappable modules
Secure SNMP
Aggregation, filtering, load balancing and port mapping
Failsafe operation in the event power is lost to the unit
Protection from attacks and breaches can be stronger than ever utilizing advanced security tools, many including AI technology. Connect these tools with intelligent TAP visibility options available from Network Critical. When comparing the budget to add necessary network protection against the liability of a massive breach that could bankrupt an organization, protection is the clear winner.
For a free network security audit or to talk with a network visibility expert, go to www.networkcritical.com/contact-us.
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