The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

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September 10, 2012

Software company: Hackers stole Apple IDs from us, not FBI

Orlando Sentinel (MCT)

ORLANDO, Fla. — An Orlando-based software company said on Monday that it was the victim of the theft of more than a million Apple user IDs in a cyber attack that has been linked to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

In a statement, BlueToad Inc. CEO Paul DeHart said that the hack came to light a “little more than a week ago,” and resulted in an “unknown group” posting Apple unique device identifiers on the Internet.

“Although we successfully defend against thousands of cyber attacks each day, this determined criminal attack ultimately resulted in a breach to a portion of our systems,” DeHart said. “When we discovered that we were the likely source of the information in question, we immediately reached out to law enforcement to inform them and to cooperate with their ongoing criminal investigation of the parties responsible for the criminal attack and the posting of the stolen information.”

Last week, according to multiple media reports, hackers associated with the organization Anonymous posted about a million Apple user IDs online, claiming they were among 12 million stolen from an FBI agent’s computer. The hackers said the release documented alleged monitoring of Apple customers by the FBI.

But BlueToad, a software and application provider, now says it was the victim of the hack.

“We have fixed the vulnerability and are working around the clock to ensure that a security breach doesn’t happen again,” DeHart said in his statement. “We sincerely apologize to our partners, clients, publishers, employees and users of our apps.”

DeHart said his company “does not collect, nor have we ever collected, highly sensitive personal information like credit cards, Social Security numbers or medical information.” The hacked information “primarily consisted of . information that was reported and stored pursuant to commercial industry development practices,” he said.

“We will continue to monitor this situation and cooperate with law enforcement in the investigation of the parties responsible for this crime,” DeHart said.

 

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