Monster Mistake

Major online recruitment player Monster has suffered its second major data hack in the last 18 months. On January 23rd Monster admitted that its database had been compromised and that certain details and phone numbers had been taken.

The data stolen from Monster included telephone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth and gender details. This kind of data is a goldmine for phising attacks and leaves the user open to the sly installation of malware and trojans.

Luckily it doesn’t seem that a bulk download of CVs occurred or the users would be open to identity theft as most CVs contain addresses, national insurance numbers and current employers details.

If Monster is to become the trusted brand that their advertising is aiming for, then they need tighten up the security so that job seekers feel safe uploading their personal details. Come on Monster sort it out – in a such a competitive market where candidates are in abundance, anything that will deter them from using their site will have a knock on effect on their advertising revenues.