\u0026 # x27; Uber customers can not do so much \u0026 # x27;

- Names, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers of tens of millions of Uber customers have fallen into the wrong hands. Hackers also captured names and driver's license numbers. ' And unfortunately, Uber customers can not do much. The data that have come into the hands of others can not be reversed. However, it is always wise to look at what information you share with them \u0026 # x27; \u0026 # x27 ;, says Erik de Jong of security officer Fox-IT.

According to Uber, the hackers have not received credit card details, bank account numbers and birth dates. Malicious people could have used such data for identity fraud. De Jong thinks that the consequences will now fall. 'Fortunately, most people will not notice it. 'He does not think that people will trade Uber for a competitor. ' If you want to use an Uber, then you will just do that in the future. ''

It concerns the data of a total of 57 million people. Whether or not they are Dutch is not known. It is also not known who is behind the theft and how they arrived at Uber. Security guard Trend Micro thinks that Uber developers have let their passwords swing somewhere. The hackers have received 100,000 US dollars from Uber to destroy the data and to be silent about it. Uber himself remained silent until Tuesday.

De Jong: 'A hack can happen to anyone. I think we will know that in 2017. The biggest mistake that Uber has made is that they tried to sweep it under the carpet and not make it public. And that is really inexcusable. ''

Such hacks are extremely common, according to De Jong. Some big cases, like Yahoo and LinkedIn, get the news. 'It is not that exceptional. But how you deal with it afterwards is very important, that makes the difference. ''

According to Sean Sullivan, researcher of cyber security F-Secure, the data leak can ultimately be traced back to the culture within Uber. 'Security is not easy. I think that safety was not their first concern. They wanted to grow, grow, grow. '' Growth is important for a company, he emphasizes, but can also become an obsession. 'If you put growth above all else, you are doomed to get into trouble. What grows quickly, is also more likely to be a tumor. ''