Adobe confirms database hack and takes Connectusers forum offline

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Adobe has confirmed that its Connectusers.com forum database has been compromised and taken offline.

As reported by IT Pro yesterday, a computer hacker claiming to be from Egypt used text sharing site Pastebin to declare that it had obtained more than 150,000 email addresses and passwords by infiltrating one of the software giant's databases.

In the post, the hacker - called ViruS_HimA - said the attack was not intended to harm Adobe's business, but to draw attention to the amount of time it takes for high-profile vendors to respond to security issues.

"When someone reports [a] vulnerability to them, it take[s] five-to-seven days for the notification that they've received your report," wrote ViruS_HimA.

"Such big companies should really respond very fast and fix the security issues as fast as they can."

It does not appear that any other Adobe services were impacted.

In a blog post, Guillaume Privat, director of the Adobe Connect business, confirmed that one of the firm's database's had been hacked, prompting it to take its Connectusers.com forum database offline and reset affected users' passwords.

"It does not appear that any other Adobe services, including the Adobe Connect conferencing service itself were impacted," stated Privat.

The Connectusers.com forum is aimed at users of the vendor's web conferencing platform, Adobe Connect, which allows people to create presentations, share content and communicate online using VoIP and video conferencing services.

"We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience this may cause to our forum members," he added.

"Your security is of critical importance to us, and we appreciate your patience as we work towards restoring Connectusers.com forum services."

Caroline Donnelly is the news and analysis editor of IT Pro and its sister site Cloud Pro, and covers general news, as well as the storage, security, public sector, cloud and Microsoft beats. Caroline has been a member of the IT Pro/Cloud Pro team since March 2012, and has previously worked as a reporter at several B2B publications, including UK channel magazine CRN, and as features writer for local weekly newspaper, The Slough and Windsor Observer. She studied Medical Biochemistry at the University of Leicester and completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Magazine Journalism at PMA Training in 2006.