AU Small Finance Bank Launches Investigation into Possible Salesforce Data Leak

AU Small Finance Bank (AU SFB) has announced that it is looking into reports of a possible data breach using a Salesforce-hosted software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that stores limited information about AU SFB's auto loan clients. According to the bank's statement to a news outlet, all banking services are running as usual, and the bank's internal systems are unaffected.

The revelation comes after the ScarlettGroup hacking organisation claimed it had gained access to private customer data and company internal systems after breaking into the bank. Information provided on HackRisk indicates that the gang has made threats to release the data.

Access to AU’s Sensitive Data: Hackers Claim   

Customer information such as Aadhaar, PAN, and Know Your Customer (KYC) records may have been compromised. It has been reported that the gang has also gained access to financial documents, loan applications, signed contracts, and credit reports.

Reports also indicate that internal audit logs, personnel information, insurance records, and customer relationship management (CRM) data may have been hacked. There has been no independent verification of the assertions. Neither the number of clients that might be impacted nor if the data ScarlettGroup claims to have accessed came from the Salesforce-hosted platform was specified by AU SFB.

Precautionary Measures for AU Bank Customers

As a precautionary measure, AU bank account bearers should be cautious of suspicious calls, emails, and messages that appear to originate from the bank. They should be wary of unfamiliar callers requesting sensitive information such as Aadhaar numbers, passwords, or one-time passwords (OTPs). Customers should keep a close eye on their bank statements and report any unusual behaviour immediately to their financial institutions. Additional information regarding the possible exposure is being sought from AU Small Finance Bank, and the inquiry is still underway.

SBI Already Alerted Indian Banks on Such Attacks

State Bank of India (SBI), the biggest bank in the nation, said last week that client data may have been exposed on the dark web. A report to the stock exchanges revealed that 3,897 customer records containing personally identifiable information had been uncovered during a preliminary investigation. On October 16, the bank was notified by the Defence Cyber Agency and the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) about the possible disclosure of customer data on the dark web. These alerts came from the bank's threat intelligence service provider.

Preliminary research into the 375,000+ records accessible on the dark web uncovered 3,897 customer records that contained personally identifiable information. Information such as registered cell phone numbers, names, ages, genders, email addresses, physical addresses, lead IDs, and metadata linked to loan and lead records are all part of the data. The State Bank of India (SBI) has stated that in order to assess the risks to both consumers and the bank, as well as to identify the possible origin and level of exposure, a thorough investigation is necessary.