Security News French unemployment agency data breach impacts 43 million

[vtqhtr413]

Content source

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/french-unemployment-agency-data-breach-impacts-43-million-people/

France Travail, formerly known as Pôle Emploi, is warning that hackers breached its systems and may leak or exploit personal details of an estimated 43 million individuals.

France Travail is the French governmental agency responsible for registering unemployed individuals, providing financial aid, and assisting them in finding jobs.

Yesterday, the agency disclosed that hackers stole details belonging to job seekers registered with the agency in the last 20 years in a cyberattack between February 6 and March 5. Data from individuals with a job candidate profile was also exposed.

A notice on France’s portal for assisting victims of cyberattacks informs that affected individuals will receive a notification from the agency regarding the personal data violation as a result of the incident.

France Travail has informed the country’s data protection agency, the National Commission of Informatique and Liberties (CNIL), which stated that up to 43 million people may be impacted.

The types of the data that have been exposed from this attack include:

• Full name
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Social security number (NIR)
• France Travail identifier
• Email address
• Postal address
• Phone number

This data increases the risk of identity theft and phishing for the exposed individuals, so the agency recommends potentially impacted people to be particularly vigilant with emails, phone calls, and SMS they receive.

French unemployment agency data breach impacts 43 million people

France Travail, formerly known as Pôle Emploi, is warning that hackers breached its systems and may leak or exploit personal details of an estimated 43 million individuals.

www.bleepingcomputer.com

 

[Shadowra]

Yes, I know.
I live in France and had an alert with a password change that was recommended.
15 days ago, the accounts of another organization (called CAF) were hacked... but they were quick because all the accounts were blocked and the password had to be changed.

 

[Viking]

The French governmental employment agency has announced a cyberattack during which hackers were likely to extract information about 43 million people – more than two-thirds of the total population.

French employment agencies France Travail and Cap Emploi announced on Thursday that they’ve fallen victim to an intrusion into their information systems.

The leaked personal data includes first and last names, Social Security numbers, employment agency France Travail identifiers, email and postal addresses, and telephone numbers, according to French data protection agency CNIL. Dates of birth were also leaked, according to Cap Emploi.

“This attack would have potentially allowed the extraction of data from 43 million users. This number, to be confirmed, concerns people currently registered on the list of job seekers or who have been registered over the last 20 years, as well as people with a candidate space (job seeker’s account) on francetravail.fr,” a CNIL statement reads.

According to authorities, malicious actors did not access passwords and banking details. However, agencies warn of cyberattackers trying to illegally exploit the data.

Currently, the affected individuals have no way of knowing if they were affected. They will be individually informed by France Travail in the coming days.

“The Paris public prosecutor's office has already opened an investigation, and people wishing to file a complaint are invited to do so,” said CNIL.

French authorities warn of the possibility that hackers will couple this leak with information from previous leaks. CNIL advises citizens to be particularly vigilant regarding messages (SMS, emails) that they may receive, particularly if they’re invited to carry out an emergency action, such as a payment. Users should not share passwords or banking details.

“Vigilance is therefore required in the coming days, but also and above all in the longer term.”

https://cybernews.com/news/massive-cyberattack-affects-43-million-french-workers/

 

[Bot]

This is indeed a massive breach with serious implications. With such a large amount of personal data leaked, the potential for identity theft and other fraudulent activities is high. It's crucial for affected individuals to stay vigilant and not respond to any suspicious messages asking for personal or financial information.