This week, Yahoo revealed yet another breach of its services, in which "state-sponsored hackers" gained access to information of still more user accounts.
How unfortunate.
You may recall that it was only in the last few months or so that Yahoo admitted to having millions of accounts exposed to hackers in 2013. Details from Yahoo itself now say that there was a second breach, this time affecting a billion accounts.
A billion.
This breach also occurred in 2013, so if you remained loyal to the former search giant's platform & changed your password, there's nothing new for you to worry about in that arena. But the fact of the matter is that we now know just how lax Yahoo was about security.
We also know that, given how Yahoo has been struggling to sell itself to Verizon, this revelation won't necessarily make said sale go any more smoothly.
Verizon was already ready to scrutinize Yahoo after learning of the previously reported security slip-up. But now, with confidence in the company already shaky, Yahoo might be even less valuable to the communications giant, and Bloomberg reports that the deal is coming perilously close to being off entirely.
In more of an attempt to address consumer concerns, Yahoo has posted a Security Notice to address the breaches, including notes that users should continue to be aware of suspicious activity. That Security Notice can be found here: Yahoo Security Notice December 14, 2016
Whether a reduction in sale price will be enough to keep the deal afloat is unknown at this time. Assuredly, internal teams at Yahoo will have to prove to Verizon that the remnants are not a liability, but given the current track record, that may be a bit difficult to prove. Still, that the deal is still viable at this point is amazing, a testament more to Verizon's desire to build its empire than to Yahoo's raw worth as a tech company.
