Author Topic: A Reminder to Change Your Passwords (Read 4683 times)

Pixart · « **on:** October 26, 2011, 19:41 »

This is a follow up to my "locked out of SS" thread of Saturday. This is just a headsup for anyone who doesn't change their passwords, or uses the same password at multiple agencies, or uses the same password in Paypal etc.

Thursday I had a password reset notice from Fotolia, and then on the weekend I couldn't login to Shutterstock. I sent a ticket, and then tried to reset the password myself - which worked. They replied to my ticket yesterday, and today sent another note (below) which copied an email (that I never did receive) explaining that my account had been compromised. Their cut and paste did not include the original date, but I could not get in Saturday evening.

IT appears that nothing has changed in my SS account. One thing that is troubling though, is that releases can be viewed by an intruder and model's personal information is vulnerable. This makes me more than a little sick because most of my models are minors.

I recommend you regularly change your password. Don't use the same password, and especially not at Paypal. Cashout when you can. A strong password has a combination of uppercase, lowercase letters and numbers. SAN25diego36. Don't use your birthdate, your name, your agency abbreviation. Shutterstock's note suggests to include symbols, but whenever I have tried to use one I haven't been able to.

Hello,

Thank you for the reply. I was also informed that we sent the following email
to you last week. In case you didn't see it, here it is again:

Dear Valued Shutterstock Account Holder:

We recently discovered that a limited number of Shutterstock accounts were
subject to unauthorized entry. As a result, your account information may have
been accessed by an unauthorized party.
In addition to other actions, we have changed your password as a precautionary
measure.
Please reset your password at your earliest opportunity by clicking on “Forgot
your password?” in the user login process, and create a new password for your
account. You may also click on a following link to do so:

For Customers:
http://www.shutterstock.com/forgot.mhtml

For Contributors:
http://submit.shutterstock.com/forgot.mhtml

We recommend that you use strong password logic, typically with a combination
of numbers, letters and symbols. Avoid using common words and abbreviations
as passwords.

Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused. Don’t
hesitate to contact us with any questions.

Regards,

Shutterstock Images LLC

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #1 on:** October 27, 2011, 01:51 »

Thanks for the reminder. I'd add to the password requirements that you noted - length is very important. 10 characters or more. See the discussions here and here

lthn · « **Reply #2 on:** October 27, 2011, 02:42 »

This almost always comes from your email getting hacked, as a communication centre for most ppl thats the main target, keep a close on eye it - delete mails containing password, etc. Hackers won't kidnap your models, what they are looking for is e-money on paypal etc.

helix7 · « **Reply #3 on:** October 27, 2011, 08:02 »

Quote from: jsnover on October 27, 2011, 01:51

Thanks for the reminder. I'd add to the password requirements that you noted - length is very important. 10 characters or more. See the discussions here and here

Absolutely. Using long passwords dramatically cuts the chances of being hacked.

I'd also suggest a PayPal security key for anyone using PayPal for payments. There was an attempt on my PayPal account a while back, and since then I've used the security key. It's a $5 investment that gives me a whole lot more peace of mind.

cathyslife · « **Reply #4 on:** October 27, 2011, 08:04 »

Thanks for the heads up. I'll go change them all now.

FD · « **Reply #5 on:** October 27, 2011, 08:12 »

Quote from: Pixart on October 26, 2011, 19:41

A strong password has a combination of uppercase, lowercase letters and numbers.

Random password generator (near the end of the article) with exact indication of nr of possibilities in function of length and character set. At your service

lisafx · « **Reply #6 on:** October 27, 2011, 13:13 »

Sorry that happened to you Lorraine. Thanks for the headsup. I already use different passwords for all those accounts, but it's still good to be reminded.

KB · « **Reply #7 on:** October 27, 2011, 13:43 »

Quote from: helix7 on October 27, 2011, 08:02

I'd also suggest a PayPal security key for anyone using PayPal for payments. There was an attempt on my PayPal account a while back, and since then I've used the security key. It's a $5 investment that gives me a whole lot more peace of mind.

Thanks for this. I'd never heard of it before. For $5 it seems definitely worth getting. Unfortunately, it looks like the price is now $30. Perhaps it's still worth getting, but I'll have to think about it longer.

RacePhoto · « **Reply #8 on:** October 27, 2011, 14:00 »

Quote from: helix7 on October 27, 2011, 08:02

Quote from: jsnover on October 27, 2011, 01:51
Thanks for the reminder. I'd add to the password requirements that you noted - length is very important. 10 characters or more. See the discussions here and here

Absolutely. Using long passwords dramatically cuts the chances of being hacked.

I'd also suggest a PayPal security key for anyone using PayPal for payments. There was an attempt on my PayPal account a while back, and since then I've used the security key. It's a $5 investment that gives me a whole lot more peace of mind.

Wow that's getting interesting:

PayPal Security Key

Obtain and use the PayPal Security Key for an additional layer of password protection, authentication and security. The lightweight, sturdy token fits on your keychain and generates a unique, six-digit code to use with your eBay User ID and password whenever you sign in to your account.

It's really a key!

anonymous · « **Reply #9 on:** October 27, 2011, 14:10 »

Quote from: lthn on October 27, 2011, 02:42

This almost always comes from your email getting hacked, as a communication centre for most ppl thats the main target, keep a close on eye it - delete mails containing password, etc. Hackers won't kidnap your models, what they are looking for is e-money on paypal etc.

..and FTP clients being compromised...

Pixart · « **Reply #10 on:** October 27, 2011, 23:46 »

Yeah, it's funny that they would try to hack my account, the queen of NIL. Must have been disappointing. A couple others mentioned they had to reset on the weekend too though, I haven't asked if they got an e-mail explaining why.