Brazil’s National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) reports that it is “taking all the appropriate measures” to investigate the exposure of over 200 million citizens’ personal information, such as taxpayer registration numbers, personal vehicle information, and general phone call record data. Together with the Federal Police of Brazil and the firm Psafe, the data protection agency is working to form an authority to “assist in the investigation and the adoption of actions to contain and mitigate risks related to the personal data of the consumers that have potentially been affected.” The ANDP released its initial strategy last week
Analyst Notes
Researchers at Binary Defense recommend that companies storing personal information and individuals who wish to protect their information should take an active role in securing personal data. A strong password policy, over 14 characters with minimal re-use, multi-factor authentication, and considering a credit freeze is a strong start. Subscribing to a free or paid verified monitoring service such as Identity Guard which helps to monitor banking transactions, credit activity, and Clearnet/Darknet credential leaks can help to bolster protection for individuals as well. Binary Defense’s Counterintelligence service provides threat monitoring services for companies and organizations to detect when employee credentials have leaked online or other potential threats appear on the Internet, Darknet and criminal forums. While there is no absolute solution to the protection of personal data, there are many proactive approaches to mitigate the risk, and insurance options to assist if ever affected by such data leaks as reported above.
Sources:
https://www.zdnet.com/article/brazilian-authorities-start-probe-as-102-million-consumers-are-exposed-in-new-leak/#ftag=RSSbaffb68 – Article Reference
https://www.zdnet.com/article/brazils-national-data-protection-authority-outlines-strategy/ – Strategy Reference
https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/largest-personal-data-leakage-brazilian-history – More Context
