Personal information of 73 million current or former AT&T customers was released on the “dark web,” according to the American telecommunications firm, following its discovery online.
On Saturday (March 30), AT&T stated that the disclosed information includes social security numbers, addresses, and passwords.
The firm stated that it has begun contacting millions of consumers about the data breach and has hired cybersecurity specialists to investigate.
The dark web has released information such as addresses, social security numbers, and passcodes, according to the US telecoms company.
AT&T data breach: No financial information was leaked
AT&T stated that it had not found evidence indicating that the data had been stolen, but had hired cybersecurity specialists to investigate.
Customers’ passcodes have been automatically reset.
The company asked them to “remain vigilant by monitoring account activity and credit reports.”
The data implicated in the incident appears to be from 2019 or before and is associated with 7.6 million consumers and 65.4 previous account holders.
It also includes full names, email addresses, and birth dates, though AT&T stated that no financial information was leaked.
The company said in a statement that it was unclear whether the data came from its systems or a third-party provider.
AT&T’s wireless 5G network serves around 290 million people in the United States, and the business is one of the country’s leading mobile and internet service providers.
In February, a large outage disrupted tens of thousands of phone customers, which prompted an apology from the company and an offer of $5 credit for anyone affected.