T-Mobile Data Breach: US FCC to Investigate Personal Data Leak of 7.8 Million Customers

T-Mobile said there is no indication that customers’ financial details were compromised.

By Reuters | Updated: 19 August 2021 11:11 IST

Highlights

Dates of birth, first, and last names were also stolen
T-Mobile had 104.8 million customers as of June
T-Mobile's data breach is the latest high-profile cyberattack

T-Mobile Data Breach: US FCC to Investigate Personal Data Leak of 7.8 Million Customers

T-Mobile said approximately 850,000 active T-Mobile prepaid customer names, phone numbers were exposed

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said late Wednesday it will investigate a data breach disclosed by T-Mobile US impacting more than 47 million current, former, and prospective customers.

The third-largest US wireless carrier said personal data, including social security numbers and driver's license information, of more than 40 million former and prospective customers was stolen along with data from 7.8 million existing T-Mobile wireless customers.

Dates of birth, first, and last names were also stolen, the telecom services provider said, adding there was no indication their financial details had been compromised.

T-Mobile Investigating Claims of Massive Customer Data Breach

"Telecommunications companies have a duty to protect their customers' information. The FCC is aware of reports of a data breach affecting T-Mobile customers and we are investigating," an FCC spokesperson told Reuters.

The company, which had 104.8 million customers as of June, acknowledged the data breach on Sunday after US-based digital media outlet Vice reported that a seller had posted on an underground forum offering private data, including social security numbers from a breach at T-Mobile servers.

T-Mobile also said approximately 850,000 active T-Mobile prepaid customer names, phone numbers, and account PINs were also exposed.

T-Mobile Says Hackers Stole Personal Data of 7.8 Million Customers

In 2015, AT&T agreed to pay a $25 million (roughly Rs. 185 crores) fine to resolve an FCC investigation into consumer privacy violations at AT&T's call centers.

Vice said the seller claimed that 100 million people had their data compromised in the breach. The seller was offering data on 30 million people for 6 Bitcoin, or around $270,000 (roughly Rs. 2 crores).

Reports later suggested that the asking price had slumped and the entire data was being sold for just $200 (roughly Rs. 14,860).

Ransomware Attacks to Get Similar Priority as Terrorism in US, Official Says

Reuters has not been able to check the veracity of the forum's post.

T-Mobile's data breach is the latest high-profile cyberattack as digital thieves take advantage of security weakened by work-from-home policies due the COVID-19 pandemic.

Earlier this month, cryptocurrency platform Poly Network lost $610 million (roughly Rs. 4,530 crores) in a hack and later offered the hacker or hackers a $500,000 (roughly Rs. 3.7 crores) "bug bounty".

It's a John Cena double-header this week on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast, as we discuss The Suicide Squad, and later, Fast & Furious 9 (from 28:03). Orbital is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.