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PC-Worm strikes Massachusetts Labor Dept., Causes Data Hack

The Labor and Workforce Development Office in Massachusetts, USA has said that approximately 1,500 PCs at the Department of Unemployment Assistance, the Department of Career Services as well as the One Stop Career Centers had lately become the targets of a worm, which hijacked Bay State inhabitants' private data. Gazettenet.com reported this on May 18, 2011.

Says Bay State, the W32.QAKBOT worm came to be noticed on April 20, 2011. Consequently, protective measures were instantly adopted through the security vendor of the state for removing the worm.

However, unlike previously understood, the worm wasn't eliminated, the state found on May 16, 2011. In fact, its constant presence led to a data hack.

Meanwhile, immediately when W32.QAKBOT was discovered security officials shutdown the system, as per the state.

But, there may've occurred theft of certain details online like inhabitants' names, their e-mail addresses, employer identification codes, Social Security Numbers, and business/residential addresses.

It's further probable that some 1,200 working staffs' bank information was as well transferred via the PC-worm.

Expressing regrets to clients, Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Joanne Goldstein stated that his office realized the problem was unwelcome, adding that the office hoped the real effect was minimal on businesses and residents, while the hack had become inactive. Bostonherald.com published this on May 17, 2011.

Goldstein stated that the agency was informing inhabitants on whom there might've been an impact, in fact anybody who dealt commercial activities with the Department of Career Services, Unemployment Assistance, or the One Stop Career Center during April 19-May 13, 2011.

Additionally, he said that the agency would caution everybody in the count of some 210,000 people it currently catered to so that utmost caution could be maintained.

Meanwhile, the agency already cautioned federal and state authorities like Attorney General Martha Coakley's cyber-crime cell and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

It even installed a hotline to provide additional information anybody wanted. Likewise, the website www.mass.gov/labor also helped provide such information.

Finally, the above incidence follows merely 1-month since the PCs of the Yavapai County government of Arizona were disrupted due to infection from the same 'Qakbot' worm.

Related article: PC-Virus of 2005 Threatening Japanese Bank Accountholders, Warns Symantec

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