Blacknight hit with external security breach

2 Feb 2012

Hosting provider and domain registrar Blacknight has revealed it had been hit by a security breach. While no data was compromised, the breach may include client contact details, such as email addresses and phone numbers, the company confirmed.

The company said in a statement this morning that the breach occurred on 31 January and was caused by an external compromise.

Blacknight recommends users update passwords used for Blacknight.com and be mindful of any unusual online account activity.

The breach is being investigated and steps are being taken to prevent it happening again.

Blacknight has notified the Data Protection Commissioner and the gardai about the issue. It has also notified Irish security professionals body Iriss.ie.

“We take our responsibilities to our customers very seriously and have already been in touch with the Data Protection Commissioner and have informed them of the breach,” said Michele Neylon, Blacknight CEO.

Neylon was one of the organisers of last week’s Stop SOPA Ireland petition which attracted more than 35,000 signatures.

“Blacknight is a secure company, however, data breaches are a reality that almost every online company must face. We are taking this opportunity to increase our security even further and apologise to our customers for any inconvenience this may cause.”

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com