Major data breach exposes 815 million Indians' personal information on dark web

Aadhaar Data Leak: A recent report by US-based cybersecurity firm Resecurity has exposed a massive data breach, endangering the personal information of approximately 815 million Indians. The breach, discovered on the dark web, includes sensitive data such as names, phone numbers, addresses, Aadhaar, and passport information.

Aadhaar Data Breach

The alarming discovery was made when a threat actor named 'pwn0001' posted a thread on Breach Forums, offering access to 815 million "Indian Citizen Aadhaar & Passport" records on October 9. This revelation is particularly concerning considering India's total population exceeds 1.486 billion people.

Resecurity's investigators, from its HUNTER (HUMINT) unit, established contact with the threat actor, who was willing to sell the entire Aadhaar and Indian passport database for a staggering $80,000.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is currently probing the breach, initially discovered by the hacker 'pwn0001.' There are indications that the compromised data could be from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) database, raising further concerns about the leak's origins.

This incident is not the first of its kind. Earlier in June, a data breach occurred when personal data, including details of vaccinated citizens, was allegedly leaked from the CoWin website through a Telegram messenger channel.

This new breach has sent shockwaves through the government, especially as India has been actively working towards digitizing its economy. The government had implemented digital public infrastructure (DPI) based on Aadhaar, individuals’ mobile numbers, and bank accounts to facilitate the seamless transfer of benefits and promote innovation in the private sector.

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