Allianz Life Cyberattack: Social Security Numbers Stolen

Allianz Life Data Breach Exposes Customer Social Security Numbers

A recent security incident at U.S. insurance provider Allianz Life resulted in the theft of a significant number of customer Social Security numbers. This information was compromised earlier this month, as detailed in notifications submitted to multiple U.S. state authorities and reviewed by TechCrunch.

Details of the Breach

Allianz Life publicly acknowledged the breach on July 16th, confirming to TechCrunch that unauthorized actors gained access to the personally identifiable information (PII) of the vast majority of its 1.4 million customers. Financial professionals and certain Allianz Life employees were also affected.

The compromise stemmed from a sophisticated social engineering attack. This involved malicious hackers employing deceptive tactics, such as posing as legitimate employees with compromised credentials, to manipulate helpdesk personnel into granting system or network access.

Data Compromised

According to a filing with the Texas attorney general, the stolen data included names, dates of birth, postal addresses, and crucially, Social Security numbers. A separate report to the Massachusetts attorney general’s office corroborated the theft of Social Security numbers during the incident.

Brett Weinberg, an Allianz Life spokesperson, confirmed the company’s awareness of the specific data types compromised. However, the company opted not to disclose this information to TechCrunch.

Notification Timeline

Allianz Life anticipates commencing notifications to impacted individuals starting August 1st. These notifications will contain detailed information pertinent to each affected person, including the specific data potentially involved.

Recent Trend in Insurance Sector Breaches

Allianz Life is not an isolated case. Several other insurance companies, including Aflac and Erie, have recently experienced data breaches. This suggests an increase in cyberattacks leveraging social engineering techniques by various hacking groups.

Contact Information: Individuals with information regarding the Allianz Life cyberattack, or those directly affected as customers or employees, are encouraged to reach out securely via encrypted messaging on Signal to zackwhittaker.1337.

This article has been updated to include further commentary from Allianz Life.