The State Bank of India (SBI) has disclosed that a cyber incident led to hackers breaching the bank’s customer records. In a filing with stock exchanges, SBI said that it suspected exposure of 3,897 customer records containing personally identifiable information (PIF) on the dark web. The bank stated the incident had not materially affected its core operations, financial performance or business continuity.
On October 16, SBI said, it received an alert from the Threat Intelligence Service Provider, the Defence Cyber Agency and the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team, or CERT-In, regarding the suspected exposure of customer data.
As per SBI, a preliminary analysis of about 3,75,000 records found on the dark web identified 3,897 customer records containing personally identifiable information. The exposed information reportedly included customers’ registered mobile numbers, dates of birth, names, gender, email addresses and residential addresses.
The records also included branch and customer information file identifiers, lead IDs, and metadata linked to loan and lead records and other related files, according to the filing.
India Today Tech had first reported a potential data breach at SBI on October 19.
SBI says core banking not affected
While the incident has exposed customer records, it does not impact core banking operations. “The bank’s core business functions continue to operate normally without disruptions,” SBI said. “The bank promptly activated its cyber incident response and containment protocols.”
The State Bank of India added a detailed investigation was required to establish the authenticity and completeness of the exposed data, identify its potential source, determine the extent of the exposure and assess the risks to customers and the bank.
The bank said it was monitoring the situation closely and would take appropriate measures in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements as the investigation into the 3,897 identified customer records continued.
Previously media reported claims by an anonymous hacker group identified as Siriusim, which alleged on the dark web forum BreachForums that it had obtained information relating to 3.75 lakh SBI customers. Though SBI has not named the hacker group involved in the incident.
The incident comes amid increased regulatory focus on cybersecurity in the banking sector. In July, Bank of Baroda acknowledged a data leak that exposed 1TB of customer data.
