According to Time Warner, emails and password details were most likely gathered through malware that was able to get downloaded during phishing attacks or indirectly through data breaches. This could have taken place thanks to other companies that stored Time Warner Cable’s customer information, which also included email addresses, suggesting that even these companies did not do well in providing adequate security to customers. While these are just speculations, the company has stated that it was not able to isolate the problem on how exactly this information was obtained, but there was no indication that Time Warner Cable’s systems were breached. According to a Time Warner Cable spokesman, the Federal Bureau of Investigation warned them that some customers’ email addresses, which also included passwords and other sensitive information, might have been compromised. The company had already sent emails to their subscribers and although we do not have information on what is stated in the email, we can pretty much figure out that the company is urging customers to change their passwords as quickly as possible in order to avoid additional theft of information, along with an apology note of some sort. While the company might have accepted responsibility for the breach that has occurred, it is imperative that they pay more attention in strengthening the security of their servers, otherwise you can rest assure that more breaches will occur in the foreseeable future.
