Punjab Newsline | New Delhi
State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest public sector bank, has launched an investigation after personal information linked to 3,897 customers was found in data reportedly leaked on the dark web.
The bank disclosed the development in a stock exchange filing on Wednesday, stating that an analysis of the leaked dataset had identified personally identifiable information (PII) in 3,897 customer records.
The information reportedly includes customers' names, registered mobile numbers, email addresses, residential addresses, dates of birth and other personal details. Some records also contain banking identifiers, including branch codes, Customer Information File (CIF) numbers and lead IDs.
SBI Received Alerts on October 16
According to the bank, it received alerts about the alleged data leak on October 16 from its threat intelligence service provider, the Defence Cyber Agency and the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In).
SBI said its technical team initiated an investigation immediately after receiving the alerts.
The disclosure followed claims by an unidentified hacking group called 'Siriusim', which alleged that it had accessed SBI-related customer data, loan applications and account-opening documents.
Cybersecurity monitoring account 'CyberPulse56' highlighted the claims on social media platform X on October 16.
Loan Records and PDF Documents Also Reportedly Exposed
An initial analysis examined approximately 375,000 records available on the dark web. During the investigation, SBI identified personal information in 3,897 customer records within a dataset reportedly containing more than 389,000 entries.
The data allegedly includes personal details, banking identifiers and metadata associated with loan applications and customer lead records.
According to claims circulated online, the hackers possessed around 380,000 data entries in CSV format and 2,722 PDF files allegedly linked to the bank.
However, the authenticity of the hacking group's claims and the original source of the data have not been independently confirmed. The full extent and origin of the alleged leak remain subject to investigation.
The incident highlights the cybersecurity risks faced by financial institutions and the importance of safeguarding customers' personal information and banking records against unauthorised access.
