marry 12.07.2024, 13:00 PM
We have all used free PDF services at least once. We were probably in a hurry, we needed to quickly create and send a PDF document. In such situations, many people turn to free PDF services, which is not always the best solution.
If you’ve ever wondered why these services are free, it’s because the security of user data is not among the top priorities for some of them, as evidenced by the discovery by the Cybernews research team that noticed that tens of thousands of documents were leaked, including passports, driver’s licenses, certificates and other personal data of users of two online PDF services – PDF Pro and Help PDF.
It’s about 89,000 documents, and the bad news is that multiple attempts to get in touch with service providers have gone completely unnoticed. Moreover, users are still uploading their documents unaware that their data is leaking onto the Internet.
PDF Pro (pdf-pro.io) and Help PDF (help-pdf.com) services are operated by the same UK-based legal entity. Users are offered PDF conversion tools, compression tools and editing tools, as well as the ability to sign documents.
The total number of leaked files is 89,062, of which 87,818 were uploaded via PDF Pro and 1,244 via Help PDF.
The files contain sensitive information that few would willingly share online, such as information from passports, driver’s licenses, certificates, contracts and other confidential documents and information.
“With access to personal documents, criminals can engage in various activities such as applying for credit, renting real estate or purchasing expensive items using the victim’s identity,” the researchers said.
Cybercriminals can use the leaked documents to impersonate and open bank accounts, apply for credit cards or perform other financial transactions in the victim’s name. In addition, they can change or falsify documents such as contracts or licenses and enter other names or manipulate contracts to their advantage, which can lead to legal problems.
Photo: cottonbro studio | Pexels
Source: www.informacija.rs
