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Toyota Financial Services (TFS) reveals that hackers stole their customers’ sensitive data in the last cyberattack.
In November 2023, the Medusa threat group claimed the Toyota data breach and asked for a $8,000,000 ransom. The company did not seem to react to the ransomware request, which is one of the best practices in these cases, according to the security specialists.
Toyota data breach stolen data and risks
Toyota Financial Services (TFS), a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation, provides auto financing to its customers.
Thus, the data they have been collecting on their clients is highly sensitive. The data leakage exposed more than full names and contacts. After gaining unauthorized access to the company’s system, the attackers exfiltrated data such as:
- contracts
- lease-purchase details
- IBANs (International Bank Account Numbers)
- Invoices
- hashed account passwords
- passport scans
Reportedly, hackers leaked all the compromised data on a dark forum. According to security specialists, malicious actors can use the PII and financial data for:
- phishing attacks
- social engineering
- financial fraud
- identity theft
Notice from Toyota Financial Services to affected customers
Sensitive data protection measures
While the investigation is still ongoing, Toyota urged the affected customers to stay alert for any unusual activity in their accounts.
Other caution measures that could limit further impact of the Toyota data breach are:
- monitoring financial statements
- beware of phishing emails or messages
- reset stronger passwords for online accounts
On the other hand, there is a set of best practices that can safeguard sensitive data and prevent data breaches. In your company, try to tick as many boxes on the following safety checklist as possible:
- Keep all software up to date. Apply regular system updates and patch known vulnerabilities for all applications that are exposed online.
- Encrypt sensitive data so the hackers won’t be able to use the information if they gain access to it.
- Educate staff to identify phishing emails and social engineering attempts.
- Enforce strong access controls. Use a strong password policy, apply multi-factor authentication and the principle of least privilege to protect access to sensitive databases.
- Conduct security audits regularly to detect and address potential security gaps.
- Build an incident response plan to be able to contain a security incident before it spreads across the system.
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