Another international economic institution was hit today by a data breach. In this case, over 10 million Korean users of the popular auction site eBay, are the potential victims of identity theft. The breach occurred in late February, but was only recently discovered and reported to the media. Information about the material stolen in the breach is still uncertain, although authorities continue their investigations both within Korea and around the world.

While the 10.8 million affected Koreans have not all been notified, officials for eBay state that the data breach did not involve the theft of any information from American buyers or sellers. Details about how the company stores its data was not released and this has been the largest of any problems to affect the online auction company. Although there have been problems in the past, this is by far the largest and most troubling for the company. It recently made headlines when buyers went on strike to protest the extra costs now tied in to completing sales on the website.

Authorities involved with the investigation have only provided some details. While they assure that the personal information about the 10 million users was not stolen, they have not made clear how they are aware of this detail. Despite their optimism, personal ids and logins for the website were taken. This information could be used to access other accounts by Korean buyers and sellers who do not have different passwords for different accounts. Variations in passwords and user ids are important for everyone in today’s world. The same can be said for making sure that passwords are strong and use a variety of numbers, letters, and symbols.

Until the investigation is completed, consumers are expected to monitor their personal accounts. This involves credit cards, loans, and other personal information. Data breaches and identity theft are becoming too common. For those individuals who think they might have been affected, there are a variety of options to consider. Many people are vowing to keep an eye on their credit reports. While there are some free reports out there, many people are finding it burdensome to keep an eye on this material in a timely fashion. As a direct result of these difficulties, more and more people are turning to subscriptions by ID theft services. While a number of companies exist to provide these services, most people are turning toward Lifelock and its inexpensive services.

For the time being, authorities continue to investigate the breach. Local law authorities have concluded that the perpetrators were located outside of the country. Unfortunately, no further details have been made available. Asia has been the site of a number of recent data breaches, although many have been traced to Germany and other locations in Europe. While international law enforcement agencies try to combat the problem, consumers are being advised to take steps to protect their identities, such as purchasing subscriptions with Lifelock.