Dreamhost Misadventures: Data Breaches, Billing Errors

[mandy]

Hackers have been able to load malware onto the official Mercury music awards site, as well as hundreds of other sites, after breaking into the systems of US-based hosting firm DreamHost.

DreamHost blamed a security flaw in its web control panel software for an attack that allowed hackers to compromise a "very small subset" of user accounts. Affected customers have been notified by email. DreamHost said only web content - not credit card or billing information - was compromised...

full article: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/07/dreamhost_hack/

Announcement on DreamHost blog:

The security flaw allowed the attackers to log into our customer web control panel with the access privileges of another user. From our web panel they were able to access individual user password information. The attackers also attempted to gain access to our central database and billing information but were ultimately thwarted in that attempt. No credit card information or customer personal information was obtained.

full announcement: http://www.dreamhoststatus.com/2007/06/0...ity-breach

[mandy]

More problems at Dreamhost:

Customers of the Los Angeles-based web hosting provider Dreamhost awoke to an unwelcome pang in their wallets today. A late-night accounting cock-up caused every customer to be charged a year's worth of truant payments when the wrong date was slipped in its automated billing program.

On Dreamhost's blog, the provider pinned the troubles on "this guy" for the payment cycle boner. The unnamed identified employee accidentally ran the company biller for outstanding charges as of December 31, 2008, instead of 2007. In the company's own message to its customers: "wreaking the havoc that we are so sorry you had to be put through."...

full article: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/01/15/...f_trouble/

blog announcement and 1,465+ comments: http://www.dreamhoststatus.com/2008/01/1...ng-issues/