Cyber Incident Victim: Geekface LLC
Date:
Aug 2014
Location:
United States of America
Summary
An intruder compromised a Geekface LLC server, accessing personal information including names, addresses, birth dates, usernames, passwords, and social security numbers, though no financial data was involved. While most passwords were encrypted, some remained unprotected, prompting the company to advise all users to reset their credentials on Hatchwise.com and other platforms where passwords might have been reused. The breach impacted designers and other registrants from Hatchwise.com and eLogoContest.com, but the total number of affected individuals was not disclosed. The notification provided no offer of credit monitoring services and omitted details on encryption measures for non-password data like social security numbers.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 1 motive | 1 technique |
| Threat Actors | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 0 actors | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
On or about August 5, 2014, an unauthorized individual gained illegal access to a server operated by Geekface LLC, the parent company of Hatchwise.com and eLogoContest.com. The intrusion compromised personal information belonging to designers and users who had registered accounts with these platforms. Accessed data included names, addresses, birth dates, usernames, passwords, and Social Security Numbers, though no financial information such as credit card numbers, debit card numbers, or account numbers was exposed. The breach impacted both designers who submitted creative work through the platforms and general users who created accounts, with eLogoContest.com redirecting to Hatchwise.com at the time of the incident. Geekface CEO George Ryan confirmed the breach in notifications sent to affected parties but did not publicly disclose the total number of compromised accounts, despite Hatchwise advertising a community of over 18,000 designers and writers.
Geekface’s breach notification, issued shortly after the discovery, instructed all users to reset their passwords on Hatchwise.com and advised changing credentials on any other platforms where passwords had been reused. The company acknowledged that while most passwords on the compromised server were encrypted, a subset remained unencrypted at the time of the breach. Notifications did not specify whether Social Security Numbers or dates of birth received encryption protections, nor did they offer complimentary credit monitoring services to affected individuals. No breach disclosures appeared on Geekface’s or Hatchwise’s official websites as of August 26, 2014, when external reports first documented the incident. The company’s response focused exclusively on credential management, with no public details provided regarding intrusion detection methods, server security enhancements, or forensic investigations.