Communauto says employee-triggered data breach exposed customer information
Communauto data breach exposes member records after employee access probe Several thousand users may be affected; watch for phishing and secure accounts
Montreal carsharing company Communauto says a potential data breach was caused by one of its own employees who tried to access and download customer records without authorization.
The company said the incident happened overnight between Sept. 3 and 4, and that police later executed a search warrant at the employee’s home to seize computer equipment. Communauto said the breach affected about 2% of its users, or several thousand members across Canada.
According to the company, passwords and payment details were not exposed, but personal information such as names, addresses, driver’s licence numbers, and in some cases photos attached to customer files were downloaded. Communauto said it has brought in a consulting firm to watch for any signs of the data appearing online and advised affected customers to be alert for phishing attempts and to use strong, unique passwords and multifactor authentication.