(Newswire.net — September 5, 2014) — The hack was presumed a possible retaliation for government-sponsored sanctions, according to, as Bloomberg states, “two people familiar with the probe.”
“The latest results from the bank’s internal investigation indicate hackers controlled computers from Latin America to Asia, to flush a stream of malware past JPMorgan’s security, and reroute stolen data to Russia.” they said.
The attack funneled huge amounts of data from bank executives and other employee computers to a large city in Russia.
It’s also not yet widely known which other banks were involved. The FBI and Secret Service are currently investigating the hack and searching for answers so that they can prevent it from happening again.
“At this time, we have no indication that U.S. Bank’s systems or networks were impacted by this event,” said Spokesman Dana Ripley. “We are aware of the matter and are monitoring it closely.” she said.
“Despite the belief that some people’s personal information may have been breached, US consumers haven’t recently been reporting a higher than normal incidence of fraud,” said Nikki Junker, Spokeswoman for the Identity Theft Resource Center in San Diego.
However, “It’s not a question of whether you’ll be a breach victim, but when.” Junker said. Millions of consumers are the victim of some sort of security breach or fraud every year.
But don’t panic, there are several things consumers can do to significantly lower their chances of identity theft.
1.Monitor your accounts closely.
2. Sign up for text alerts.
3. Change your online account password.
4. Don’t use the same password for multiple accounts.
5. Have deposit accounts at more than one bank.
6. Watch out for anything unusual.
7. If you have a debit card, consider closing it.
8. Verify your last login date.
9. Watch out for phishing.
10. Install a firewall on your computer.
11. Use anti-virus and anti-spyware software.
12. Cancel paper statements
13. Read user licensing agreements
14. Update your contact information
Former NSA/US Cyber Command chief and cyber security consultant Keith Alexander said the success of such an attack highlights just how “vulnerable” the US financial sector is, and how future attacks could result in significantly more damage.