Incident: Data Breach at Trump Hotels: Credit Card Information Compromised

Published Date: 2015-09-30

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident at Trump hotels occurred between May 19, 2014, and June 2, 2015 [51599].
System 1. Trump hotel chain's payment systems [51599]
Responsible Organization 1. Hackers [51599]
Impacted Organization 1. Customers who visited Trump hotels between May 19, 2014, and June 2, 2015 [51599] 2. Trump Hotel Collection [51599]
Software Causes 1. The software cause of the failure incident was hackers placing special software on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems, which included malware that captured sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599].
Non-software Causes 1. Lack of robust cybersecurity measures to prevent unauthorized access by hackers [51599] 2. Insufficient monitoring and detection systems to identify the presence of malware within the computer systems [51599] 3. Inadequate protection of sensitive payment information such as credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599]
Impacts 1. Customer credit card data potentially stolen for an entire year at Trump hotels across the United States and Canada [51599]. 2. Customers who visited Trump hotels between May 19, 2014, and June 2, 2015, may have been affected by the hack [51599]. 3. Hackers placed special software on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems, compromising sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599]. 4. The company offered one year of free identity fraud protection to affected customers [51599]. 5. The incident caused inconvenience to victims, although credit cards have fraud protection [51599].
Preventions 1. Implementing robust cybersecurity measures such as regular security audits, penetration testing, and network monitoring to detect and prevent unauthorized access by hackers [51599]. 2. Ensuring timely software updates and patches to address known vulnerabilities that could be exploited by malware or hackers [51599]. 3. Educating employees and customers about cybersecurity best practices, such as avoiding suspicious links or emails that could lead to malware installation [51599]. 4. Implementing encryption protocols for sensitive data transmission and storage to protect customer information from being easily accessed by hackers [51599].
Fixes 1. Implementing robust cybersecurity measures such as regular security audits, intrusion detection systems, and encryption protocols to prevent future malware attacks [51599]. 2. Conducting thorough security assessments and penetration testing to identify vulnerabilities in the payment systems and address them promptly [51599]. 3. Enhancing employee training on cybersecurity best practices to prevent social engineering attacks and unauthorized access to sensitive data [51599].
References 1. Trump Hotel Collection website 2. Trump hotels 3. Kevin Watson, CEO of data security company Netsurion 4. Independent forensic investigation conducted by the company 5. List of affected hotels 6. List of other hacked companies in the last two years

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization, multiple_organization (a) The software failure incident has happened again at one_organization: The article mentions that Trump hotels are only the latest addition to an increasingly long list of hacked companies. In the last two years, hackers managed to steal payment data from various companies including Albertson's, CVS Photo, Home Depot, Michaels, Neiman Marcus, P.F. Chang's, Staples, SuperValu, and Target. This indicates that Trump hotels have experienced a similar incident of a software failure (hack) involving customer data theft, similar to what other companies have faced in the past [51599]. (b) The software failure incident has happened again at multiple_organization: The article highlights that in the last two years, various companies such as Albertson's, CVS Photo, Home Depot, Michaels, Neiman Marcus, P.F. Chang's, Staples, SuperValu, and Target have also been victims of hackers stealing payment data. This suggests that multiple organizations have faced similar incidents of software failures (hacks) involving the theft of customer payment information [51599].
Phase (Design/Operation) design, operation (a) The software failure incident related to the design phase can be attributed to the hackers placing special software on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems. This malware was able to capture sensitive payment information such as credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes as customers or hotel employees entered the payment information [51599]. (b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase can be seen in the fact that the hackers managed to hide inside the company's computers for a long time, indicating a failure in the operation or maintenance of the system's security measures. Additionally, the company mentioned that an independent forensic investigation had not conclusively determined if any particular customer's payment card information was taken, suggesting a potential failure in monitoring and detecting unauthorized activities in the system [51599].
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) within_system: The software failure incident at Trump hotels was due to hackers managing to place special software on the hotel chain's payment systems, allowing them to access sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599]. This indicates that the failure originated from within the system itself, as the hackers were able to infiltrate and compromise the internal software and systems of the hotel chain.
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions, human_actions (a) The software failure incident occurring due to non-human actions: - Hackers snuck a computer virus into Trump hotels, potentially stealing customer credit card data [Article 51599]. (b) The software failure incident occurring due to human actions: - Hackers managed to hide inside the company's computers for a long time, indicating a breach caused by human actions [Article 51599].
Dimension (Hardware/Software) hardware, software (a) The software failure incident at Trump hotels was primarily due to a hardware-related issue. Hackers managed to sneak a computer virus into the hotel chain's computers, specifically targeting the payment systems. This hardware infiltration allowed the hackers to place special software on the payment systems, enabling them to access and potentially steal sensitive payment information such as credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599]. (b) The software failure incident also had contributing factors originating in software. The hackers were able to hide inside the company's computers for a long time, indicating a vulnerability in the software systems that allowed for unauthorized access and malware installation. The malicious software quietly grabbed payment information as it was typed in by customers or hotel employees, highlighting a software-related flaw in the system's security measures [51599].
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) malicious (a) The software failure incident at Trump hotels was malicious in nature. Hackers managed to sneak a computer virus into the hotel chain's systems, potentially stealing customer credit card data for an entire year. The hackers placed special software on the payment systems to capture sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes. This act was intentional and aimed at extracting valuable data from the system [51599].
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) poor_decisions (a) The intent of the software failure incident related to poor_decisions: - The software failure incident at Trump hotels was a result of hackers managing to sneak a computer virus into the hotel chain's computers, potentially stealing customer credit card data for an entire year [51599]. - The hackers placed special software on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems, which allowed them to access sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599]. - The incident highlighted the importance of data security and the consequences of poor decisions in maintaining secure systems, as the hackers were able to hide inside the company's computers for a long time without being detected [51599]. (b) The intent of the software failure incident related to accidental_decisions: - The software failure incident at Trump hotels was not attributed to accidental decisions but rather a deliberate act by hackers who managed to infiltrate the hotel chain's systems and place malicious software to steal payment information [51599]. - The incident was a result of a targeted cyberattack aimed at extracting sensitive customer data, indicating a premeditated and intentional action rather than accidental decisions leading to the failure [51599].
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) development_incompetence, unknown (a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is evident in the article as hackers managed to sneak a computer virus into Trump hotels' systems, potentially stealing customer credit card data for an entire year. This breach occurred due to hackers placing special software on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems, allowing them to access sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599]. (b) The software failure incident related to accidental factors is not explicitly mentioned in the article.
Duration permanent (a) The software failure incident in this case can be considered permanent as hackers managed to sneak a computer virus into Trump hotels across the United States and Canada, potentially stealing customer credit card data for an entire year [51599]. The malware was placed on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems, allowing hackers to access sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes for a prolonged period between May 19, 2014, and June 2, 2015. The company acknowledged the computer infection on its website, indicating a long-term impact of the software failure incident.
Behaviour omission, value, other (a) crash: The article does not mention a system crash where the system loses state and does not perform any of its intended functions. (b) omission: The software failure incident in the article can be categorized under omission as the hackers managed to hide inside the company's computers for a long time, quietly grabbing payment information as customers or hotel employees typed it in without the system omitting to perform its intended functions [51599]. (c) timing: The article does not indicate a timing failure where the system performs its intended functions correctly but too late or too early. (d) value: The software failure incident can be categorized under value as the malicious software placed on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems touched sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes, leading to the system performing its intended functions incorrectly [51599]. (e) byzantine: The article does not describe a byzantine behavior where the system behaves erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. (f) other: The software failure incident can be categorized under other as it involved hackers sneaking a computer virus into Trump hotels, potentially stealing customer credit card data, which is a behavior not explicitly described in the options (a to e) [51599].

IoT System Layer

Layer Option Rationale
Perception None None
Communication None None
Application None None

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence property, theoretical_consequence (d) property: People's material goods, money, or data was impacted due to the software failure The software failure incident at Trump hotels involved hackers sneaking a computer virus into the hotel chain's systems, potentially stealing customer credit card data for an entire year. The malware placed on the payment systems by the hackers targeted sensitive payment information such as credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes. Customers and hotel employees who typed in payment information may have had their data quietly grabbed by the malicious software. The company acknowledged the breach but stated that an independent forensic investigation had not conclusively determined if any particular customer's payment card information was taken. As a precaution, the hotel chain offered one year of free identity fraud protection to affected customers [51599].
Domain finance (a) The software failure incident reported in Article 51599 is related to the finance industry. The incident involved hackers sneaking a computer virus into Trump hotels across the United States and Canada, potentially stealing customer credit card data [51599]. The malware placed on the Trump hotel chain's payment systems targeted sensitive payment information like credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes [51599]. The company acknowledged the computer infection and offered one year of free identity fraud protection to affected customers [51599].

Sources

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