To my knowledge it is the fist time that Amazon is hacked. Credit cards numbers are safe, they say.
From today's FT, FYI,
David
January 17, 2012 4:59 am
Zappos warns customers after cyberattack
By Barney Jopson in New York
Zappos, an online shoe seller owned by Amazon, has been hit by a cyberattack that has forced to it warn up to 24m customers that hackers may have accessed some of their personal information.
The attack is a major setback for both Zappos and Amazon because the two companies have been credited by e-commerce analysts with doing more than most to help build shoppers’ trust in the security and reliability of online shopping.
Tony Hsieh, Zappos chief executive, told customers in emails sent on Sunday and Monday that “there may have been illegal and unauthorised access” to some information in their Zappos accounts – but not their credit card numbers.
In an email to staff he said the company, which Amazon bought for $1.2bn in 2009, was working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to examine what happened.
He told customers that the information that may have been accessed was “your name, email address, billing and shipping addresses, phone number, the last four digits of your credit card number … and/or your cryptographically scrambled password (but not your actual password)”.
Unlike other recent incidents of corporate hacking, Zappos stressed that customers’ credit card data and other payment information had not been accessed.
But Mr Hsieh told customers that Zappos had “expired” their passwords and asked them to reset new ones.
He also recommended “that you change your password on any other web site where you use the same or a similar password” and warned customers to be wary of any emails or phone calls that asked for personal information.
A Zappos spokeswoman said the Nevada-based company had no further comment.
Zappos, founded in 1999, operates largely independently of Amazon. It has tried to distinguish itself from the proliferation of online rivals with a kooky character, a vast inventory, and customer service staff who win praise from shoppers for being unusually accessible and friendly.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2012.