AT&T Investigating Data Breach Affecting 73 Million Customers
AT&T has disclosed that it is currently investigating a major data breach that has exposed the personal information of 73 million current and former customers in the United States. The telecommunications giant revealed that the stolen data, which includes sensitive details such as Social Security numbers, was discovered on the ‘dark web’ approximately two weeks ago.
“At this time, AT&T has no evidence of unauthorized access to its systems that resulted in the extraction of this information,” stated the company in a press release issued on Saturday morning. It remains unclear whether the leaked data originated from AT&T or one of its providers.
The leaked data is believed to correspond to 2019 or earlier and does not include financial information or specific details about call history. Approximately 7.6 million current account holders and 65.4 million former account holders have been affected by the breach.
In response to the breach, AT&T has started notifying its customers and advising them to change their account passwords as a precautionary measure. The company is also urging customers to monitor their accounts and credit reports for any unusual activity. Additionally, AT&T will provide credit monitoring services at its expense to affected customers.
The telecommunications company was made aware of the potential data leak about two weeks ago, after it was initially reported by vx-underground on March 17. AT&T has reassured the public that they have not found any proof of their systems being compromised.
“We believe and are working to confirm that the data set discussed today is the same one that has been recycled multiple times on this forum,” stated AT&T in response to the breach.
The investigation into the data breach is ongoing, and AT&T is committed to ensuring the security and protection of its customers’ information.