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Fix Britain's Internet: ISPs campaign to tear BT and Openreach apart
After reviewing the tangled relationship between BT and its broadband infrastructure subsidiary Openreach for more than a year, Ofcom yesterday put forward its plan to create a greater distinction between the two businesses. Under the proposals, Openreach would become "a legally separate company," whilst remaining under the BT Group umbrella; a move Ofcom says is the most cost-effective and least disruptive way of giving Openreach greater independence. But -- surprise, surprise -- BT competitors, which are also Openreach customers, believe Ofcom hasn't gone far enough.
Sophisticated hack attack? Don't believe the hype.
You wouldn't believe how sophisticated hacking has become in the past few years. It has, in fact, gotten so mind-blowingly complex and erudite that this word, sophisticated, is now the only one human beings can really use to describe any single act of computer-security violation. Actually, no. The word, at best, has almost always been used to cover up egregious screwups of breached companies, and shoddy reporting. Or, when at a loss to understand even the most mundane of hacks. Even high-minded publications step into infosec's linguistic dung heap and track the word throughout their pieces on whatever latest rehashed cyber-bomb hysteria-of-the-week they're pushing.
TalkTalk TV to offer BT Sport channels
TalkTalk, like Virgin Media, doesn't hold the rights to any live sport in the UK. Instead, the company has to hash out deals with other broadcasters, such as Sky and BT, to offer its subscribers new channels and coverage. TalkTalk TV customers can already pay extra for Sky Sports, but today the company announced that a BT Sport package is also being added to the mix. The price of the bolt-on subscription is yet to be determined, but TalkTalk has confirmed that it will include BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2, BT Sport Europe and BT Sport ESPN. Notably, there's no BT Sport Ultra HD.
TalkTalk to simplify broadband prices by including line rental
Line rental is one of the things you have to consider when taking out a broadband contract, since they almost always come hand in hand. But with these two separate monthly fees, one-off setup charges and introductory discounts, you need ten minutes and a calculator to figure out exactly what you're being asked to pay. TalkTalk has pledged today, however, that this autumn it's going to make everything that bit simpler, by bundling line rental and broadband costs into one, transparent monthly price for all of its packages.
TalkTalk relaunches TV Store with lowest price promise
TalkTalk may've already renamed the video streaming service it acquired from Tesco last summer, but today marks something of a formal relaunch. The TalkTalk TV Store, formerly known as Blinkbox under Tesco's wing, still serves exactly the same purpose. Like Amazon Instant Video, the Sky Store or Wuaki.tv, users can rent or buy movies and TV shows to watch on multiple devices, no subscription required. The most important change today is pricing, with TalkTalk now claiming to be the cheapest place to catch new releases like Star Wars: The Force Awakens. While that's technically true, TalkTalk has simply matched Amazon's pricing, so they share the title together.
TalkTalk's customer helpline now uses voice authentication
The days of digging out that grubby Post-it note with your telephone account password scrawled on are over for TalkTalk customers. From today, you'll only need your vocal cords to prove you are who you say you are. That's because TalkTalk has introduced biometric voice authentication on its customer services helpline, in what's said to be the first implementation in the UK outside of the financial industry.
TalkTalk loses over 100,000 customers following hack
It was inevitable that last October's cyber attack would drive some customers away from TalkTalk. At the time, the extent of the damage was unclear but the company has finally shared some numbers as part of its latest trading update. The provider says that in its third quarter, 101,000 subscribers (95,000 of which were directly tied to the attack) cancelled their contracts, costing the company as much as £60 million.
TalkTalk call centre reps arrested for leaking customer data
TalkTalk just can't catch a break. Late last year, the quad-play provider suffered a "significant and sustained cyberattack" that resulted in the personal details of over 150,000 customers being stolen. It was the second serious breach in as many years, even prompting a government enquiry into the preventative measures in place at all UK telecoms and internet providers. Sensitive data can be obtained any number of ways, however, and TalkTalk believes it recently uncovered a small-scale leaking operation being carried out by a few of its third-party call centre reps.
TalkTalk finally rebrands Tesco's old Blinkbox service
A year ago Tesco abandoned its various Blinkbox businesses, which spanned TV, movies, music and ebooks, by either closing them down or selling them off to the highest bidder. The TV and movie streaming portion was acquired by TalkTalk and today, the service is finally taking on a new form. Head over to the Blinkbox website and you'll see the new "TalkTalk TV Store" logo, which Pocket-Lint reports will soon be paired with a matching domain. Likewise, the Blinkbox apps are now TalkTalk TV Player, bringing everything in line with its broader TalkTalk TV branding.
TalkTalk hack: Police make fifth arrest on blackmail charges
Now that we know the full extent of the TalkTalk hack, the whole affair has started to quieten down. Police are still pursuing the people responsible though and now, we've been told that a fifth suspect has been arrested. Officers used a search warrant on a property in Llanelli, Wales, before apprehending an 18-year-old boy on suspicion of blackmail. Unlike the other four suspects that have been arrested -- a 15-year-old from Northern Ireland, a 16-year-old from Feltham in London, a 16-year-old from Norwich and a 20-year-old man from south Staffordshire -- he hasn't been released on bail, at least not yet. At this time, he also isn't suspected of any Computer Misuse Act offences.
TalkTalk offers all customers a free upgrade to stop them leaving
After totting up the final number of customers involved in its October cyberattack, TalkTalk has begun laying out what it will do for those affected and how it expects to recover. In a trading update today, the company said it expects damages to cost between £30 million and £35 million as it copes with a "loss of online sales and service capability" following the October 21st hack. With four arrests in the bag and systems now back online, TalkTalk also said it will offer "free upgrades" to all customers, whether they've been affected by the hack or not.
TalkTalk hack: exactly 156,959 customers had personal details stolen
Two weeks after TalkTalk confirmed a "significant and sustained cyberattack" on its website, the company has revealed exactly how much data was stolen. Hackers obtained personal details for 156,959 customers, including their names, email addresses and phone numbers. A week ago it placed the figure at "less than 1.2 million" -- and while that was technically accurate, today's update should feel like a radical downgrade. Of those affected customers, TalkTalk says 15,656 bank account numbers and sort codes were obtained in the attack. That's down from the "less than 21,000" it had stated previously.
TalkTalk hack: MPs launch inquiry after police make fourth arrest
We now know the extent of the TalkTalk hack, and while it's not as bad as everyone first feared, it still poses massive questions about cybersecurity and the countermeasures being taken by British technology companies. To get a better grasp of the situation, the UK's cross-party Culture, Media and Sport Committee has launched an inquiry today into the recent attack. While TalkTalk is the focal point -- MPs will look at the "nature" of the hack and TalkTalk's response -- it'll also be considering the telecoms and internet service provider (ISP) industry as a whole. Specifically, the Committee wants to know what measures are being taken to stop these sorts of breaches, how much money businesses are investing in their defences, and whether response protocols could be improved.
TalkTalk hack investigation results in a third arrest
Just how many people were involved in the TalkTalk hack? That's the question everyone's now asking after UK police arrested a third individual over the weekend. Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit apprehended a 20-year-old man on Saturday, after obtaining a search warrant for a property in south Staffordshire. He was later released on bail, and officers have confirmed that he won't be recalled until March next year. Police arrested a further two suspects last week -- a 15-year-old boy from County Antrim, Northern Ireland, and a 16-year-old boy from Feltham, London. An address in Liverpool has also been examined, although it's unclear how that relates to the overall investigation.
TalkTalk says 'less than 1.2 million' customer details stolen in hack
Exactly one week ago TalkTalk revealed that it had been hit by a "significant and sustained cyberattack," resulting in a wealth of customer data being stolen. Millions of users were potentially affected; a couple of days later, TalkTalk stressed that the amount of financial information obtained was "materially lower than initially believed." So how much information was actually taken? Well, today TalkTalk is ready to talk numbers. For starters, it says "less than 1.2 million" customer email addresses, name and phone numbers were accessed by the attacker(s). Similarly, less than 28,000 obscured credit and debit card details -- the middle six digits shouldn't have been visible -- and less than 21,000 bank account numbers and sort codes. Finally, the company believes less than 15,000 customer dates of birth were taken in the attack. TalkTalk's careful wording means it's difficult to know exactly how many customers were affected, but at least we have some ballpark figures now.
London police arrest second teenager over TalkTalk data breach
The hack which exposed millions of TalkTalk customer account details may have been orchestrated by more than one individual. Following the arrest of a 15-year-old boy on Monday, Metropolitan Police today confirmed that a second individual has been apprehended in connection with the case. A 16-year-old boy was cuffed on Thursday at an address in Feltham, London, by detectives from the Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit. The property was searched and the teenager has since been released on bail. In a statement, officers confirmed that a second property in Liverpool has also been examined, although it's unclear how this relates to the overall investigation.
TalkTalk customers must prove fraud to avoid cancellation fees
With investigations making progress and a 15-year-old suspect in custody following a "significant and sustained" attack on its website, TalkTalk has begun notifying customers of their next steps. In its latest update, the company says that "as a gesture of goodwill," subscribers wishing to cancel their service can have their termination fees waived only if they can prove they had money stolen from them. Personal details including names, addresses, phone numbers and credit card/account numbers were taken in the attack, but the company later clarified that banking data was obfuscated and could not be used to directly empty customer accounts.
London police arrest 15-year-old boy over TalkTalk hack
As TalkTalk looks to reassure customers and investors in the wake of last week's website hack, the Metropolitan Police has wasted no time tracking down the people behind it. Scotland Yard confirmed today that MPCCU officers, with help from Northern Ireland's Cyber Crime Centre and the National Crime Agency, arrested a 15-year-old boy in County Antrim, Northern Ireland on "suspicion of Computer Misuse Act offences."
TalkTalk hack: what you need to know
Late last night, quad-play provider TalkTalk issued an urgent statement alerting customers that its website had been hacked. Following a "significant and sustained cyberattack," the company warned that names, addresses, account information and credit card/bank information may have been stolen. Subscribers have been told that they may be contacted by nefarious third-parties asking for personal information and to look out for any irregular activity on their online accounts. It's worrying when something like this happens once, but for TalkTalk, this is the second big data scare in a year.
TalkTalk hacked in 'significant and sustained cyberattack'
TalkTalk subscribers are this morning waking up to news that the company has been the subject of another hack. Following an intrusion at the end of last year, which saw some customer data stolen, the broadband provider announced today that its website was the target of a "significant and sustained cyberattack" that may have captured personal details including names, addresses, account information and credit card/bank data.
