Citibank admits: We've lost the backup tape

The Register ^ | Tuesday 7th June 2005 | Andrew Orlowski

[softengine]

"The company admitted that it doesn't use encryption..."

All together now folks - Holy Sh.......

[Dinsdale]

"The company admitted that it doesn't use encryption..."

That is flat out stupid. Granted the encrypion built into most backup software is week, but not using it is unacceptable for a financial institution.

[mewzilla]

Whoa.

[dirtboy]

If you knew some of the stuff that I have seen about the data that banks have sent through UPS without encryption or security safeguards or even checking out where they are sending it, you'd drop a cinder block.

[BigSkyFreeper]

Did they ever stop to think to use UPS package tracking? My guess is at this point, the tape is stolen.

[Unknown Freeper]

Does anybody ever get fired over this? Geez, this is data security 101.

[BigSkyFreeper]

I'll bet some high-ranking CEO got promoted over this fiasco.

[softengine]

Pachage tracking, who'd have thunk... Lol.

[tophat9000]

"The company admitted that it doesn't use encryption..." All together now folks - Holy Sh.......

You wouldn't encrypt a backup... but then wouldn't/shouldn't ship your off-site backup tape via UPS so it could get lost

[FreedomAvatar]

Banks are dinosaurs. They're using old-fashioned tape technology and plain-text. I'm surprised the headline wasn't "Bank loses deck of punch cards".

[BigSkyFreeper]

Well, people like me who depend on UPS in the future will "benefit" from the higher shipping fees amid lawsuits from angry Citibank customers. You just know lawsuits are in the pipe.

[highball]

Aaaaaarrrrgh!

Citibank is *my* bank!

But then, everybody already knows that by now....

[BigSkyFreeper]

Banks are dinosaurs.

I got a friend in Mississippi who repairs and fixes bank teller machines. He said the ones he works on use OS/2 Warp.

[LizardQueen]

You wouldn't encrypt a backup... but then wouldn't/shouldn't ship your off-site backup tape via UPS so it could get lost.

Agreed. I've worked at several banks and the backups weren't encrypted. But the tapes were hand-couriered to and from the "iron mountain" offsite storage and checked in/checked out on both ends. We never sent them via common carrier!

Speaking of bank screwups, a very large bank who shall remain nameless keeps sending me CDs of customer data for the wrong company. I've told them repeatedly to cease and desist but it happens 2 or 3 times a year.

LQ

[cricket]

["The company admitted that it doesn't use encryption..."

All together now folks - Holy Sh.......]

What part about 'security' do these folks not understand?

Who are these people, really?

[DancesWithTrout]

They should have sent it regular US Mail. The credit card bill they send me every month never fails to get here. NEVER,NEVER,NEVER.

[cricket]

"Citibank is *my* bank! But then, everybody already knows that by now...."

LOL. . .but no laughing matter, of course.

[JWinNC]

on tape??? tape???

not encrypted???

sent by UPS???

How can these people be so stupid???

Not only should people be fired, the whole division should be shut down for incompetence. If laws were broken, they should be prosecuted to the max. This is unbelievable.

[mewzilla]

I'll bet some high-ranking CEO got promoted over this fiasco.

Then promptly has his identity stolen if there's any justice.

[OB1kNOb]

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