| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident related to the exposure of sensitive customer data due to a design defect in one of its production applications at First American Financial Corp. is a case of a similar incident happening within the same organization. The article mentions that other companies like Kay Jewelers, Fiserv, and LifeLock have also remedied similar exposures in the past year, indicating a pattern of such incidents within the industry [84790]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase is evident in the article. First American Financial Corp. confirmed that they learned of a design defect in one of its production applications that allowed unauthorized access to customer data [84790]. This design flaw in the application made it possible for bad actors to view sensitive documents without the need for password protection or encryption, indicating a failure introduced during the development phase.
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase is also highlighted in the article. First American took immediate action to address the situation and shut down external access to the application once they became aware of the issue [84790]. This response to the incident falls under the operation phase, as it involves actions taken to mitigate the impact of the design flaw during the system's operation. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system, outside_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident at First American Financial Corp. was due to a design defect in one of its production applications, which made unauthorized access to customer data possible. The company confirmed that the issue was a result of a design flaw within their system, allowing bad actors to view sensitive documents without the need for password protection or encryption [84790].
(b) outside_system: The vulnerability that led to the exposure of nearly 900 million files containing sensitive information was exploited by bad actors who only needed a web address to access the documents. This indicates that the contributing factor originating from outside the system was the malicious intent of individuals taking advantage of the system's design flaw [84790]. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident in this case occurred due to non-human actions. The vulnerability that exposed nearly 900 million files containing sensitive information was a result of a design defect in one of First American Financial Corp.'s production applications. This defect allowed unauthorized access to customer data without the need for human intervention. The documents were left without password protection or encryption, making it easy for bad actors to view them by simply knowing the web address of a document [84790]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident in Article 84790 was not directly attributed to hardware issues. The vulnerability that led to the exposure of sensitive customer data at First American Financial Corp. was due to a design defect in one of its production applications, which allowed unauthorized access to customer data. This design defect was a software-related issue rather than a hardware-related one [84790]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
malicious |
(a) The software failure incident in Article 84790 was malicious in nature. The incident involved a design defect in one of First American Financial Corp.'s production applications that allowed unauthorized access to customer data. This vulnerability left an enormous trove of digital documents exposed, including sensitive information such as social security numbers, bank account numbers, mortgage and tax records, wire transaction receipts, and more. Bad actors could easily access these documents without any password protection or encryption, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive customer information [84790]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
(a) The software failure incident related to the exposure of sensitive customer data at First American Financial Corp. was primarily due to poor decisions. The incident occurred due to a design defect in one of its production applications that allowed unauthorized access to customer data. The documents containing sensitive information were left online without password protection or encryption, making it easy for bad actors to access them with just a web address. This design flaw and lack of security measures were contributing factors introduced by poor decisions made in the development and implementation of the software [84790]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence, accidental |
(a) The software failure incident in Article 84790 occurred due to development incompetence. First American Financial Corp. left an enormous trove of digital documents vulnerable, some containing sensitive information like social security numbers and bank account details, without password protection or encryption. This design defect in one of its production applications allowed unauthorized access to customer data, highlighting a lack of professional competence in ensuring proper security measures were in place [84790].
(b) The incident can also be categorized as accidental, as the exposure of nearly 900 million files containing sensitive information was not intentional but rather a result of the design defect in the application that allowed unauthorized access. The company took immediate action to address the situation and shut down external access to the application upon discovery, indicating that the exposure was accidental rather than deliberate [84790]. |
| Duration |
temporary |
The software failure incident reported in Article 84790 was temporary. The incident was caused by a design defect in one of First American Financial Corp.'s production applications, which allowed unauthorized access to customer data. The company took immediate action to address the situation by shutting down external access to the application. They are currently evaluating the impact on customer information and conducting an internal review before providing further comments [84790]. |
| Behaviour |
crash, omission, value, other |
(a) crash: The software failure incident in the article can be categorized as a crash. The incident involved a design defect in one of First American Financial Corp.'s production applications that allowed unauthorized access to customer data, leading the company to shut down external access to the application [84790].
(b) omission: The software failure incident can also be categorized as an omission. The system omitted to protect the enormous trove of digital documents containing sensitive information by leaving them without password protection or other encryption, making them easily accessible to bad actors [84790].
(c) timing: The timing of the software failure incident is not explicitly mentioned in the article.
(d) value: The software failure incident can be categorized as a value failure. The system failed to perform its intended function correctly by allowing unauthorized access to customer data, potentially exposing sensitive information such as social security numbers, bank account information, and other personal documents [84790].
(e) byzantine: The software failure incident is not described as exhibiting byzantine behavior in the article.
(f) other: The software failure incident can be categorized as a security vulnerability leading to a data breach. The incident involved a flaw in the system's design that allowed for unauthorized access to a vast amount of sensitive customer information, highlighting a significant security lapse [84790]. |