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Cyber Risks · Krebs on Security

After Tax Fraud Spike, Payroll Firm Greenshades Ditches SSN/DOB Logins

Summary: Payroll management firm Greenshades allowed corporate payroll administrators to reach employee payroll and W2 data using only an employee's Social Security number and date of birth, and criminals used that access to mass-file fraudulent IRS tax refund requests against employees at client firms. Reported incidents included Chicago public high school employees, Milwaukee county workers, and Nebraska's Lower Platte North Natural Resources District, where 90 percent of employees had taxes filed fraudulently; co-CEO Matthew Kane said clients demanded the weak credentials and that the most secure option offered was a username and password.

What's compelling: SSN and date of birth data sells on underground crime shops for less than $4 per person in Bitcoin, so credentials built from those fields are effectively public - and at one Nebraska district, 90 percent of employees had fraudulent returns filed in their names.

Read the original at Krebs on Security ↗

Topics
Identity & Access Management
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