Cybereducation101- Optus Data Breach

Optus Data Breach 2022

Author

Cyber Education
May 18, 2023

Hey Techies!

In today’s newsletter, let’s address a data breach that occurred in a different nation. Have you heard of the Australian telecom company Optus? On September 22, 2022, the company suffered one of the largest data breaches in Australian history. The breach was caused by a combination of flaws in their system. One of these flaws was the use of an unprotected and publicly exposed API that facilitated access to sensitive customer data without requiring user authentication. The use of incrementing customer identifiers and the lack of an authentication policy for the API were also contributing factors.

As a result of this breach, the personal data of 9.8 million Optus customers was compromised. The hacker used an automated script to complete the breach much faster and on a larger scale. Crazy, right? The breach affected a range of personal data, including home addresses, passport numbers, and drivers’ licenses.

In response to the breach, the Australian government has proposed changes to its consumer privacy rules. The changes will enable telecommunication companies to share government-issued identification documents with banks, which will help improve fraud detection while ensuring that only limited information is shared temporarily.

We would like to remind our readers about the importance of cybersecurity and safe cybersecurity practices. Always be cautious when sharing personal information online and make sure to use strong and unique passwords. Finally, we encourage you to subscribe to and Share our newsletter to receive regular updates and insights on the ever-changing cybersecurity landscape. Let’s continue to grow our community of cybersecurity techies!

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Stay informed and stay secure.

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