ADT has announced that it has experienced a significant data breach, in which personal customer information was taken and subsequently shared online.
The leading provider of home security systems disclosed this incident in a Form 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), revealing that external entities gained unauthorized access to its databases, resulting in the theft of customer data.
According to the report, “a limited amount” of information was extracted from previous orders belonging to a small group of customers. This included their email addresses, phone numbers, and physical addresses.
Understanding the ADT Data Breach
“ADT Inc. recently faced a cybersecurity challenge whereby unauthorized individuals managed to infiltrate certain databases housing customer order details,” stated the filing.
The company reported that once they became aware of the situation, they swiftly implemented measures to terminate unauthorized access and initiated an inquiry by involving top third-party cybersecurity experts.
ADT assured its customers that there was no indication that more sensitive information like credit card or banking details were compromised during this breach, emphasizing that their home security systems remain secure.
The exposed data later emerged on notorious hacking forums by a user named “netnsher”, who claimed access to a database containing more than 30,812 records—including approximately 30,400 unique email addresses.
Although TechRadar Pro reached out for comments from ADT—who reported having around six million customers as of June 2024—there has been no official response as yet. However, an ADT spokesperson told our partner site Tom’s Guide, stating: “ADT has identified that an unauthorized individual(s) accessed specific customer information. The company promptly enacted appropriate responses; enforcing our cybersecurity protocols and enhancing alert measures while also commencing a thorough forensic investigation.”
“We can confirm with certainty that none of our customer’s home security mechanisms were breached or compromised and no sensitive personally identifiable information such as credit card numbers or bank account details have been accessed.”
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