T-Mobile said Monday it had begun an investigation after a hacker group claimed to have obtained data from some 100 million of the operator’s US customers and put at it up for sale on the dark web.
The massive breach purportedly includes sensitive personal information like social security and driver’s license numbers.
“We are aware of claims made in an underground forum and have been actively investigating their validity,” a spokesperson for the US telecom operator said. “We do not have any additional information to share at this time.”
According to screenshots posted by the security website Bleeping Computer, personal data from at least 30 million people was offered for sale on dark web forums for the equivalent of $280,000 in bitcoin.
The breach was first reported by the Vice website Motherboard, which quoted a seller claiming to offer “full customer info” of T-Mobile customers.
The reports come following a wave of data breaches and ransomware attacks affecting a wide range of companies and organizations including a US pipeline operator, Ireland’s health IT system and a major airline in India.
Facebook, Yahoo and Marriott are among US firms hit by massive customer data breaches in recent years affecting more than 100 million users.
T-Mobile in 2019 acquired rival telecom operator Sprint to better position itself against AT&T and Verizon.
McDonald’s latest company to be hit by a data breach
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T-Mobile investigates after report of massive breach (2021, August 16)
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