Heads up - security leak if you complained to ESRB

[Sarayana]

wow.com and various other sites have pointed out a major, major faux-pas in connection with the whole RealID debacle. ESRB, the Entertainment Software Rating Board, received many complaints about RealID and, with the announcement about Blizz changing their minds, decided to let those who wrote them know... Unfortunately the ******* that wrote said email CC'd everyone instead of BCC'ing them.

If you complained about RealID to the ESRB, you might have had your address exposed in this way. I'd strongly recommending various safeguards, including changing your email on battle.net if you used the same email address. Be extra vigilant about incoming emails from unknown sources, scan your system diligently, and if at all possible, switch addresses. I guarantee those thousand email addresses are already on the radar of every gold seller, hacker, and phisher in the WoWiverse.

[Vephriel]

I can't even begin to comment on the pure irony of this. Way to drop the ball ESRB.

/facepalm

EDIT: Thought this comment from the wow.com article was rather amusing.

"Dear Privacy Board:

Thank you for exposing all 961 e-mail addresses to everyone else that sent you a message concerning the privacy of their data. It's great to see that a company such as yourselves takes pride in maintaining privacy by using a CC instead of a BCC. Really. It is truly heartwarming to know that there are checks in place to prevent the accidental or intentional release of private user information such as e-mail addresses to unauthorized individuals such as myself.

I mean, knowing that such a top notch team of privacy experts ONLY puts their seal of approval on websites when a website meets those obviously stringent guidelines! Pray tell, can you elaborate as to what those policies that you hold other companies, and I'm sure yourselves, to? Because I'm really really interested to know what part of that policy says it's OK to mass mail everyone that's sent you a message of concern a response that includes everybody else's e-mail address in a very clear breach of Privacy.

I'm leaving the CC in place in case anyone didn't notice how badly you just screwed up."

[Sarayana]

The wow_ladies thread on this has some amazing facepalm gifs.

[Mania]

Ah ... Picard and Riker.

[Karathyriel]

I am so glad that canceling my account was the only thing I did.

This is like installing an anti-virus that is already infected!
On one hand you'd say "OK, whoever wrote it is human and makes mistakes" but this is like seeing a cop shoplifting.

I really wonder where all this is going in the end...

[Sarayana]

I am so glad that canceling my account was the only thing I did.

This is like installing an anti-virus that is already infected!
On one hand you'd say "OK, whoever wrote it is human and makes mistakes" but this is like seeing a cop shoplifting.

I really wonder where all this is going in the end...

Lawsuits? It's the US after all. (Ouch broad generalisation! The sociologist in me just cringed at myself >_<) Seriously though, I guarantee people are complaining about it right now. I'm sure they'll find some suitable scape goat.

[cowmuflage]

Wait i'm lost did Blizz do this or the esrb?

[Sarayana]

The ESRB. It was a follow-up mail to the whole RealID debacle.

[cowmuflage]

Oh ok now im on the right track thanks matey

[VelkynKarma]

Wow. Am I ever glad I was taking a wow break when this whole mess started up, or I probably would have complained too X_x;

/extremely lucky

~VelkynKarma

[Dulanie]

Wow. Just.......wow. This is right up there with my sister asking what a pecil was (and meaning it) in 7th grade in front of 200+ people.

[Redith]

Ok im taking a big leap by saying this...But I have no idea what they did...Forgive me could someone dumb it down for me?

[Saturo]

They sent the mail out in a way so everyone could see everyone elses email adress, when they could just as easily have made everyone invisible to everyone else.

[Vephriel]

Basically something like 900+ people wrote in to ESRB to file a complaint regarding Blizzard's Real ID situation.

ESRB replied to all of those people at once, but instead of hiding the emails they were shown to every single person. You know how you get those annoying forward messages with like 15 other email addresses at the top? It was like that but on a much larger scale. Also laughably ironic considering the whole issue was regarding online privacy in the first place, and ESRB went and revealed everyone's email addresses.

[Redith]

They sent the mail out in a way so everyone could see everyone elses email adress, when they could just as easily have made everyone invisible to everyone else.

NO EFFIN WAY! That is uber stoopid

[Siliverin]

all i have to say is WOW you have got to be kidding me -_- wtb less fail people

[Dewclaw]

Wow, I bet the guy that did that is in a world of trouble.

[Aleu]

Now I'm happy I didn't complain to the ESRB. :X Blizzard escapes the lawsuits, but I'm not sure the ESRB will.

[cowmuflage]

Well is their fault isnt it? lol

[Foru21dr]

And I bet that person no longer has a job