Aflac Cyberattack: Customer Data Compromised

Aflac, a leading insurance provider in the United States, has confirmed that a cyberattack earlier this month resulted in the unauthorized access of its customers’ personal information. The exact quantity of compromised data remains unknown.

In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday, Aflac disclosed that it detected hackers within its system on June 12 and promptly contained the incident. The company, which offers supplemental insurance to cover expenses not included in primary insurance plans, noted that the compromised data includes sensitive customer information, such as Social Security numbers and health details. However, the number of affected customers has not been determined.

The breach extends beyond customer data, also affecting information related to Aflac’s beneficiaries, employees, and agents.

Aflac attributed the breach to a sophisticated cybercrime group known for targeting the U.S. insurance industry, but clarified that its systems were not affected by ransomware. According to the company’s press release on Friday, the hackers employed social engineering tactics to gain unauthorized access to Aflac’s network.

When contacted by TechCrunch via email on Monday, an Aflac spokesperson declined to provide additional information, choosing not to comment further on the incident.

With approximately 50 million customers, as per the company’s website, Aflac is the latest U.S. insurance company to fall victim to a cyberattack. This incident occurs amidst warnings of increased hacker activity targeting the insurance industry.

John Hultquist, chief analyst for Google’s threat intelligence unit, recently stated that the unit is aware of multiple intrusions in the U.S. that bear the hallmarks of activity linked to Scattered Spider, a collective of hackers known for using social engineering tactics and threats of violence to target company help desks and gain network access.

Scattered Spider is also reportedly behind recent cyberattacks on Erie Insurance and Philadelphia Insurance Companies, which disclosed breaches this month with ongoing disruption. The group’s attacks are financially motivated and have previously been linked to cyberattacks on tech giants, casinos, hotels, and recent data breaches in the U.K. and U.S. retail sectors.