According to various media reports, A massive hacking at one of India’s largest health insurers, Star Health, has exposed the private details of over 31 million customers. The stolen data, including sensitive medical reports, has been made publicly accessible through chatbots on the messaging app Telegram.
Stolen customer data including medical reports from India’s biggest health insurer, Star Health, is publicly accessible via chatbots on Telegram, just weeks after Telegram’s founder was accused of allowing the messenger app to facilitate crime.
The alleged creator of the chatbots told a security researcher, who alerted the agency of the development. According to the report, the private details of millions of people were for sale, and samples could be viewed by asking the bots to disclose them.
This comes nearly a month after Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durav was arrested in France over allegations that the platform was being used for illicit activity. Telegram has also come under the scanner of the Indian government for allegedly facilitating extortion and gambling activities.
According to the report, a user named “xenZen” has created chatbots that allow users to request and download various documents, including policy details, claims information, and even medical diagnoses. Reuters says that it was able to download more than 1,500 files that have names, phone numbers, addresses, tax details, copies of ID cards, test results and medical diagnoses of customers.
Star Health and Allied Insurance told Reuters in a statement that the company reported alleged unauthorized data access to local authorities. The company disclosed in an initial statement that “no widespread compromise” happened and that “sensitive customer data remains secure”.
