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Hackers have found a handy tool to take control of bank accounts, tap into corporate computer networks and dig up sensitive government documents, Reuters reports.
It's called Google.
The Internet's most popular search engine can find everything from goldfish-care tips to old classmates in the blink of an eye, but it's equally adept at finding caches of credit-card numbers and back doors into protected databases.
Unlike other intrusion techniques, Google hacking doesn't require special software or an extensive knowledge of computer code.
Using Google, identity thieves can easily find credit-card and bank-account numbers, tax returns, and other personal information buried in court documents, expense reports and school Web sites that contain such information.
"The most practical thing I can tell people is to be fully aware of what their Google presence is. Companies and even individuals should be aware of what they look like through Google," said Johnny Long, a Computer Sciences Corp. researcher and author of "Google Hacking for Penetration Testers."
It's called Google.
The Internet's most popular search engine can find everything from goldfish-care tips to old classmates in the blink of an eye, but it's equally adept at finding caches of credit-card numbers and back doors into protected databases.
Unlike other intrusion techniques, Google hacking doesn't require special software or an extensive knowledge of computer code.
Using Google, identity thieves can easily find credit-card and bank-account numbers, tax returns, and other personal information buried in court documents, expense reports and school Web sites that contain such information.
"The most practical thing I can tell people is to be fully aware of what their Google presence is. Companies and even individuals should be aware of what they look like through Google," said Johnny Long, a Computer Sciences Corp. researcher and author of "Google Hacking for Penetration Testers."