Sony hack exposed personal data of Hollywood stars

 

The hack at Sony Pictures Entertainment disclosed far more personal information than previously believed, including the Social Security numbers of more than 47,000 current and former employees, as well as actors and other freelancers who have worked for the studio.

 An analysis of 33,000 Sony documents by data-security consulting firm Identity Finder LLC found personal data, including salaries and home addresses, posted online for people who stopped working at Sony Pictures as far back as 2000 and one who started in 1955.

The hack and subsequent posting by a group calling itself Guardians of Peace illustrate the risks large companies like Sony 6758, +1.29% SNE, +0.77%  take by amassing years of digital records on employees and customers on machines connected to the Internet. Much of the data analyzed by Identity Finder was stored in Microsoft Excel files without password protection.

The documents, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, also contain the Social Security numbers or taxpayer-identification numbers of thousands of freelancers, including actors who appeared in movies and TV shows produced by the Sony Corp.-owned studio, one of Hollywood’s largest. Among them are Sylvester Stallone, director Judd Apatow and Australian actress Rebel Wilson. Representatives for the three stars declined to comment.

The personal data can be found alongside contracts and other sensitive documents in massive files currently being traded on file-sharing networks such as Bit Torrent.

Source: Marketwatch.com