Hacker Posts Credit Card Numbers

Frustrated extortionist publishes online buyers' card numbers.

Nancy Weil, IDG News Service

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Apparently angered by Internet music seller eUniverse's refusal to pay, an unidentified extortionist posted stolen customer credit card information on a Web site last Friday.

The company notified the FBI immediately and it shut down the Web site, which was hosted by a company in the state of Washington. It appears eUniverse's CD Universe online music store was the hacker's target, says Brett Brewer, eUniverse spokesperson.

The hacker claimed to be from Russia, but that could not be verified. Brewer would not comment on how much money the hacker demanded in return for not posting the stolen information.

Brewer says he is not certain how many credit card numbers appeared online, but notes that published reports claimed 32 numbers appeared on the now-closed Web site. According to a report in yesterday's New York Times, the hacker claimed to have more than 300,000 customer credit card files and was asking for $100,000 from CD Universe.

eUniverse is also working with credit card companies and customers whose personal information might have been compromised, Brewer says. The company also hired an outside security vendor to review its security procedures, according to a company spokesperson.

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