Thousands of popular TV streaming stick owners have been hacked in a major data breach
ROKU – the company behind the popular Fire TV Stick rival – has admitted that more than 15,000 user accounts have been hacked.
There is evidence that hackers obtained credit card information from user accounts on two separate occasions and attempted to make fraudulent purchases.
The company says the first breach happened last year and a second attack happened in February.
Roku added that it has refunded customers affected by unauthorized purchases.
Once malicious parties gained access to the accounts via their leaked credentials, hackers locked out the original customers.
According to Roku, many account holders will not have received email confirmation of fraudulent orders placed through the account.
This is because the hackers changed the account information quickly after breaking in.
It is encouraged that Roku customers check their bank statements for any fishing purchases.
Not only financial data was made public, but also names, emails and passwords.
How to keep your accounts safe
It is highly recommended that registered Roku users reset their passwords.
If the password leaked in the breach is used for multiple accounts, customers will also need to change the passwords for those accounts.
Roku says registered owners are required to reset their passwords while they investigate the unlawful activity – so you may have already done this.
However, it is important to secure your other accounts as well.
It is also advisable to set up two-factor authentication (2FA) for all accounts you can.
Two-factor authentication is becoming increasingly popular and is also available for Google and WhatsApp accounts.
It means users need both a password and a passcode sent to them to access accounts and prevent hacking.
The breaches were documented in a file filed March 8 with the office of the attorneys general for Maine and California.
Here, Roku explains that the incidents occurred on December 28, 2023 and February 21, 2024.
In response, Roku says it quickly secured the accounts from further unauthorized access.
The company remains alert to any further “signs of suspicious activity”.