VOIP provider discloses customer e-mail addresses

In a typical case of "oops," Internet telephony provider Packet8 last week accidentally disclosed the e-mail addresses of about 21,000 of its subscribers.

The addresses are those of customers who subscribe to Packet8's monthly e-mail newsletter, a company representative said Tuesday. An employee attached a file containing the addresses to the newsletter, she said. The incident was reported earlier by U.K. tech news outlet VNUNet.com.

Such a list of e-mail addresses is a feast for phishers, who could use it to target Packet8 users with tailored scams. Phishing attacks combine e-mail messages and fraudulent Web sites to trick victims into giving up sensitive information such as credit card and social security numbers.

Packet8 provides internet telephony services to consumers and businesses. The company, which competes with providers such as Vonage, claims more than 73,000 subscribers. Packet8 has taken steps to ensure the e-mail goof-up doesn't happen again, the representative said.