Hackers who breached U.S. insurance giant Allianz Life earlier this month stole large amounts of customer Social Security numbers, according to notifications filed with several U.S. states. Allianz Life disclosed the July 16 breach over the weekend, confirming that unidentified hackers stole personally identifiable information belonging to the majority of its 1.4 million customers, as well as financial professionals and some employees.
The company stated that its customer relationship database was compromised in a social engineering attack. This type of attack involves deceptive tactics, such as impersonating an employee to trick helpdesks into granting access to a system or network.
In a filing with the Texas attorney general, Allianz Life revealed that the hackers stole names, dates of birth, postal addresses, and Social Security numbers from its database. A separate filing with the Massachusetts attorney general’s office also confirmed that Social Security numbers were taken in the breach.
When contacted, Allianz Life spokesperson Brett Weinberg declined to specify what types of personal data were compromised or whether the company had fully assessed the extent of the stolen information. The spokesperson said Allianz Life expects to begin notifying affected individuals by August 1. The notifications will include details about the type of data that may have been exposed.
Allianz Life is the latest insurance company to suffer a breach in recent weeks, following incidents involving Aflac and Erie. Multiple hacking groups known for social engineering attacks have been increasing their cyberattacks, targeting various industries.
If you have additional information about the Allianz Life cyberattack or are an affected customer or employee, you can securely contact the reporter via encrypted messaging.