Sensitive information of 81.5 Cr Indians surfaces on dark web

New Delhi: Sensitive information pertaining to 81.5 crore Indians has been discovered on the dark web, marking what could be the largest data leak scandal in Indian history, as reported by Indian media.

The leak has been brought to attention by ‘pwn0001’ –– a hacker –– who advertised the stolen information on the dark web.

The information is believed to have come from the data collected by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) during COVID-19 testing. However, the epicentre of the leak is still unknown.

As per the data shared by the hacker, the stolen information comprises Aadhaar and passport details, along with names, phone numbers and temporary and permanent addresses of millions of Indians. The hacker also claims that this data comes from the information ICMR collected during COVID-19 testing.

Over 100,000 ChatGPT accounts compromised, sold on dark web: cybersecurity firm

The initial discovery of this data breach was reportedly made by the US-based agency Re-Security, which specializes in cybersecurity and intelligence.

Security experts uncovered over 100,000 files containing personal information of Indian citizens within the leaked data.

Reports have indicated that government agencies have been inundated with COVID-19 test-related data, making it challenging to pinpoint the exact source of the data leak.