Australian Telstra suffers data breach two weeks after Optus attack
Category: #technology  By Pranali Mehta  Date: 2022-10-05
  • share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
Australian Telstra suffers data breach two weeks after Optus attack

Telstra, the largest telecoms company based in Australia, has reportedly suffered a small data breach, an announcement that comes almost two weeks after the major rival Optus got hit by a huge cyber-attack.

The country's biggest telecom service provider has 18.8 million customer accounts, equal to three-quarters of the population in Australia, and it claimed that a third-party organization's attack exposed certain staff data dating back to 2017.

As per local media, 30,000 current and past employees were reportedly affected by a Telstra internal company email.

According to a corporate spokesperson, the information that was stolen was basic in nature and comprised of just email addresses as well as names.

Without going into any detail, the official added that it is suspected that it has been made accessible now in a move to benefit from the Optus breach.

Telstra stated that the hack only affected current and past personnel and declined to reveal more about the number of people impacted or when it happened.

Since Optus revealed on September 22 that a violation of its systems may have jeopardized the credentials of up to 10 million individuals, the government, financial, and telecommunications industries in Australia were on high alert. Home addresses, passport information, and license numbers were among the data that got stolen.

Singtel, the telecommunications company based in Singapore that owns Optus, has stated that it is evaluating the attack's potential costs while class action lawsuits are being considered by law firms.

The Australian government has continued to criticize Optus for labeling the hack as complex and for delaying notifying vulnerable customers, even though it believes the data breach was caused by a simple security flaw.

According to Government Services Minister Bill Shorten, Optus's top management is fooling themselves if they expect an award for the way that they have been engaging with the issue.

Optus refused to answer Shorten's remarks but stated that the firm was working effectively to give the impacted consumers with relevant updates.

Source credit: https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/australias-telstra-reveals-data-breach-two-weeks-after-attack-on-optus

  • share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn

About Author

Pranali Mehta

Pranali Mehta    

Pranali Mehta boasts of over three years of experience as a content writer. Having completed her graduation in chemical engineering, she worked as safety & environment associate in a chemical company for a year. Harnessing her passion for writing however, Pranali deci...

Read More >>

More News By Pranali Mehta

Evergrande announces offshore debt restructuring plan despite crisis
Evergrande announces offshore debt restructuring plan despite crisis
By Pranali Mehta

Chinese property giant Evergrande has announced new debt restructuring plans for offshore debt worth USD 20 billion. This move has emerged as a motivational step for other struggling developers as well. The restructuring plan will help the firm in...

PBFG announces U.S. business expansion across West & Midwest
PBFG announces U.S. business expansion across West & Midwest
By Pranali Mehta

Planet Based Foods Global Inc. has reportedly announced its decision to expand its distribution in the West and Midwest. Following the expansion, the company’s products will be available in stores like Smith’s and Mariano’s. The com...

Singaporean bank stocks fall as Credit Suisse faces economic crisis
Singaporean bank stocks fall as Credit Suisse faces economic crisis
By Pranali Mehta

The stocks of local banks in Singapore have declined significantly, due to the crisis affecting the second-largest bank in Switzerland, Credit Suisse, and the failure of a chain of banks in the United States of America. Credit Suisse fell by 30% on W...