Data breach at Nova Entertainment saw hackers compromise over 250,000 users’ data

• The breach occurred between 2009 and 2011 and is believed to have affected 261,948 Australians.
• The information compromised in the hack includes usernames, passwords, residential addresses and other sensitive details of individuals.

Nova Entertainment confirmed that it suffered a data breach that may have resulted in the compromise of users’ personal data. The firm notified those potentially affected by the breach via emails, SMS messages or letters.

About the breach

The breach occurred between 2009 and 2011 and is believed to have affected 261,948 Australians. The information compromised in the hack includes usernames, passwords residential addresses, birth dates, email addresses, phone numbers, genders of individuals. However, the firm said that no financial information or copies of ID were affected.

The radio station also mentioned that no existing systems of Nova were impacted in the breach. The information disclosed in the breach is being described as being a ‘legacy dataset’ from May 2009 to October 2011.

Workarounds

After discovering the incident, Nova Entertainment hired security experts to investigate the matter. The firm said that it is working towards strengthening the security of their systems.

“Upon confirming the validity of this incident, we immediately engaged leading Privacy, IT and Cyber Security consultants to understand the circumstances of the disclosure. Our investigation is substantial and ongoing. We are taking all necessary measures to ensure the strength and effectiveness of our cybersecurity, and there is currently no evidence of any suspicious activity or threats on Nova Entertainment's systems,” Cathy O’ Connor, Nova’s CEO, said in a press release.

The radio station has informed the Office of Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) and is working closely with law enforcement bodies to address the issue.