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This case study explores one of the most devastating data breaches in cyber history, affecting millions of individuals and exposing critical personal information.
In 2017, Equifax, one of the largest credit bureaus in the U.S., suffered a breach due to an unpatched Apache Struts vulnerability. Hackers exfiltrated sensitive data over the course of 76 days before being detected.
Apache disclosed a critical vulnerability (CVE-2017-5638). Equifax failed to patch its systems.
Hackers exploited the flaw and gained access to Equifax systems, extracting massive amounts of PII.
Equifax discovered the breach and began internal investigation.
Equifax publicly announced the breach, causing public outrage and loss of trust.
Step 1: Equifax failed to patch a known Apache Struts vulnerability (CVE-2017-5638).
Step 2: Attackers exploited the flaw to infiltrate internal servers.
Step 3: Over 76 days, attackers exfiltrated personal data of ~147 million individuals.
Step 4: Breach was discovered internally and publicly disclosed after delay.
The breach exposed sensitive data such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and driver's license numbers of 147 million Americans. It resulted in over $1.4 billion in total damages and a $700 million settlement.
The Equifax breach is a harsh lesson in the importance of basic cyber hygiene, timely patching, and proactive monitoring. Its aftermath shaped global data privacy regulations and enforcement.