TaskRabbit returns after security breach and reveals 'personally identifiable information' was exposed
The CEO of TaskRabbit has informed users that "certain personally identifiable information may have been compromised" in a security incident that saw the website and app taken offline earlier in the week.
TaskRabbit -- a service that puts "taskers" in touch with people who need help with jobs around the home -- is now back online, and the company is now on a damage limitation exercise, issuing a statement in the name of "trust, openness, and transparency". Stacy Brown-Philpot says that an investigation is still underway to determine what happened, but explains that "preliminary evidence shows that an unauthorized user gained access to our systems".
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Brown-Philpot does not say exactly what sort of information may have been accessed in the security breach, nor does she indicate how many people may be affected. However, she does say that TaskRabbit is working with an outside forensics team and will let individuals know if their data was involved. In the meantime, she says, "Taskers and Clients should monitor their accounts for any suspicious activity. Also, anyone who uses their TaskRabbit password on other websites and apps should change them."
Going on to explain a little about what is happening moving forward, she says:
Because cyber threats are constantly evolving, we continually update our security program. As a result of this incident, we are working to implement additional measures to enhance the security of our systems following this incident, including:
- Examining ways to make our login processes more secure;
- Evaluating our data retention practices to reduce the amount of data we hold on Taskers and Clients, where appropriate; and
- Enhancing overall network cyber threat detection technology
Our Taskers and Clients are the lifeblood of our business. We care deeply about our community and are committed to being a better neighbor. With our website and apps back online, we hope you will give us the opportunity to regain your trust.
Further updates will be provided on a dedicated section of the TaskRabbit website: taskrabbit.com/update.