Cybercrime is something that both individuals and businesses have had to become used to over recent years, with our increased reliance on the digital world putting us at increased risk of online criminal activity. While many people and businesses try and take steps to protect themselves against this type of crime, most are aware that the increasingly sophisticated methods being used by cybercriminals means that risks are still high.

Concerns have now been increased even more following an admission by software giant Adobe with regards to recent cyber attacks. Officials from Adobe revealed recently that cybercriminals had hacked the source codes relating to some of its most popular programs, which has raised fears that there could be a wave of cyber attacks on a global basis. Many now fear that criminals could target financial and personal data held on a range of internet enabled devices.

Many could be at Risk

There are concerns that many people could now be at risk from cybercriminals after hackers snatched the source code behind a number of programs including one that accesses PDFs. The encrypted credit card details of nearly 3 million customers were also taken by hackers in what has been described as one of the worst infiltrations in a decade.

Having got their hands on the source codes, cybercriminals may be able to manipulate vulnerabilities in the software and hack the machines and devices of users. This would then allow them to gather personal and sensitive information such as financial and personal data, which could then be used to commit identity theft or could be sold on the black market.

One industry expert said that the incident could lead to a new wave of cyber attacks, so consumers and businesses really needed to be on their guard. He said that if the source code was compromised everyone could be affected. He also said that hackers could now found numerous ways to exploit the source code. In addition, he claimed that this was the worst breach of source code security since 2004, which is when a Microsoft program code was snatched by hackers.

The hacking crime is now being investigated by both Adobe and federal authorities, and at present it is thought that the criminals are based in the USA. While the breach occurred a while ago and has been under investigation since August, it was only recently that the severity of the crime came to light. Adobe has stated that contact is being made with customers whose card details were taken and everything possible was being done to minimize risk to consumers who may be affected.