- Dec 27, 2016
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You’ve probably heard that Optus has suffered a massive data breach, with hackers potentially gaining access to the personal information of millions of Australian customers. It’s one of the largest data breaches in Australia history, and the telco has confirmed that up to 9.8 million customers may be affected.
Optus first alerted customers and media to the cyberattack on Thursday afternoon after noticing suspicious activity on its network, which the telco says it shut down “immediately”. In addition to launching its own investigation, Optus has notified the Australian Federal Police and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, and is working with the Australian Cyber Security Centre to determine exactly how many customers could be impacted.
“While not everyone may be affected and our investigation is not yet complete, we want all of our customers to be aware of what has happened as soon as possible so that they can increase their vigilance,” Kelly Bayer Rosmarin, Optus CEO, said.
Hackers have been known to sell stolen information, particularly if an attack is financially motivated. However, Optus has not yet been able to confirm how much data has been exposed, or where that customer info may be circulating.
Fortunately, financial and payment details, account passwords, and voice calls and messages were not compromised, so data such as direct debit or credit card information remains safe. But both Optus and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s ScamWatch branch have urged customers to watch out for signs of identity theft and, if needed, take extra steps to secure their accounts.
Meanwhile:
Someone wants $1 million in the Monero cryptocurrency from Optus to not sell the data to other people. Otherwise, they say they will sell it in parcels.
Optus investigates.
www.smh.com.au
Optus first alerted customers and media to the cyberattack on Thursday afternoon after noticing suspicious activity on its network, which the telco says it shut down “immediately”. In addition to launching its own investigation, Optus has notified the Australian Federal Police and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, and is working with the Australian Cyber Security Centre to determine exactly how many customers could be impacted.
“While not everyone may be affected and our investigation is not yet complete, we want all of our customers to be aware of what has happened as soon as possible so that they can increase their vigilance,” Kelly Bayer Rosmarin, Optus CEO, said.
Hackers have been known to sell stolen information, particularly if an attack is financially motivated. However, Optus has not yet been able to confirm how much data has been exposed, or where that customer info may be circulating.
Fortunately, financial and payment details, account passwords, and voice calls and messages were not compromised, so data such as direct debit or credit card information remains safe. But both Optus and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s ScamWatch branch have urged customers to watch out for signs of identity theft and, if needed, take extra steps to secure their accounts.
Meanwhile:
Someone wants $1 million in the Monero cryptocurrency from Optus to not sell the data to other people. Otherwise, they say they will sell it in parcels.
Optus investigates.
Optus $US1 million ransom threat investigated
The hackers claim to have personal information on millions of Australians, although the authenticity of their assertion has not been established.
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