May 3

May 3 ParkMobile hacked, but Winooski users are likely safe

User data is believed to be safe, city and company officials say, for patrons of ParkMobile, an app that helps find and pay for parking spaces used throughout Winooski.

BGR.com, a tech website, released an article with information about the hack. The tip for the breach came from Brian Krebs, a cybersecurity investigative reporter. He reported that the hacker is selling users’ account information, and has been able to access their emails, birth dates, phone numbers, license plates, and hashed passwords.

ParkMobile released a statement where they credited the cause of the breach to a third-party software they use. They also launched an investigation where they found that no customer credit card information was able to be accessed, or parking transaction history.

Jessie Baker, the city manager of Winooski, said that they were notified by ParkMobile of the cybersecurity malfunction. . However, she stated that “we do not believe that any customer information was compromised” when referring to the breach.

ParkMobile released to them a statement on March 26th that informed them of their ongoing investigation into the hack, as well as their reassurance that no payment card information was accessed.

Users of ParkMobile should change passwords. To do so, go to “Settings” through the app or on their website.

Winooski is not the only city to fall victim to the data breach — scores of municipalities that use the app across the U.S. have been dealing with the ParkMobile breach. The city encourages users to read the update that ParkMobile posted on their website and app.

BGR.com urges users to avoid future hacks by considering using 2-factor authentication, as well as having a difficult password for hackers to guess. Change your password regularly as well.

2021 has been the year for hackers and data breachers — ParkMobile is one app in a long trend of issues. A 2019 report from Accenture found an 11% increase in security breaches since the last year, as well as a 67% rise in the last five years.