In the past week, two more major data breaches from cyber attacks have come to light.
Last week, it was Latitude Financial, in one of the first major hacks on a financial services company in Australia.
This week, the ABC revealed Australia's biggest skin cancer study has also been hit.
Here's what to do if you think your details have been compromised as a result of these breaches.
What happened with the data breaches?
Last week, Latitude Financial said hackers stole personal information of approximately 330,000 customers.
On Monday it confirmed this included:
- 103,000 identity documents — with 97 per cent of those being copies of drivers' licences or driver licence numbers
- Less than 4 per cent copies of passports or passport numbers
- Less than 1 per cent was Medicare numbers.
Latitude Financial said those numbers may grow, putting out a statement saying the situation "remains active".
The non-bank lender offers loans, insurance and credit cards with retailers, including David Jones, JB Hi-Fi, The Good Guys and Harvey Norman.
Today, it was revealed servers holding highly sensitive data collected by QIMR Berghofer, a medical research institute based in Brisbane, were hit last year.
When approached by the ABC, QIMR Berghofer revealed that 1,128 people were caught up in the data breach.
QIMR Berghofer said names, address and Medicare numbers "may have been compromised".
What is Latitude Financial doing about the security breach?
Its attack is now the subject of an investigation by the Australian Federal Police.
The non-bank lender also added that it has been "experiencing outages due to the cyber-attack and this is impacting our ability to speak to and respond to customers".
Latitude has engaged IDCARE, a not-for-profit organsiation, to help support those impacted.
The non-bank lender said it would post further updates on its website, which you can view here.
Latitude has faced anger and criticism from its estimated 2.8 million customers about the cyber attack.
What should Latitude Financial customers do?
Latitude confirmed in an update to the ASX that it would replace identification documents "at no cost to our customers".
"Latitude will confirm to each impacted customer and applicant what personal information has been stolen, what we are doing to support them and what additional steps customers should consider taking to further protect their information," Latitude Financial said in a statement on Monday.
"This includes Latitude working with relevant agencies to replace identification documents, where necessary, at no cost to our customers."
What is QMIR Berghofer doing about the security breach?
QIMR Berghofer said it had "identified affected participants and contacted them directly by email in accordance with the recommendation of the Office of the Information Commissioner Queensland".
The hacked servers were owned and operated by Datatime, a technology company hired by the medical research institute.
"No other information, including genetic data or other, was involved or held by Datatime," it said in a statement.
Datatime, on the other hand, told the ABC that survey responses from participants were, in fact, on its server at the time of the hack.
QIMR Berghofer would not say whether it was the subject of any other unpublicised data breaches.
How to replace your drivers licence?
Licence numbers are issued by states and territories, so the process changes, depending on where you live.
It's best to contact your jurisdiction's transport department for advice.
With a copy of your licence, criminals can open lines of credit in your name and buy personal items, apply for credit cards or large personal loans and then disappear.
How to replace your passport?
You can replace your passport by:
- going through Passport replacement portal
- picking up a form at a participating Australia Post outlet
- contacting an Australian diplomatic or consular mission.
A passport ordinarily costs $193 to replace, while a new passport costs up to $308.
How to replace your Medicare card?
People can't access your Medicare details with just your Medicare card number.
However, if you're concerned or you've been affected, you can replace your Medicare card.
There are three ways to replace your Medicare card:
- using your Medicare online account through myGov
- the Express Plus Medicare mobile app
- calling the Medicare program on 132 011.
'Disappointing yet unsurprising'
Monash University Professor Nigel Phair said that because banking and finance were Australia's most-important critical infrastructure sectors, it was vital organisations put extra effort into security.
"It is disappointing, yet unsurprising," he said, stressing that many attacks could be traced back to third-party breaches.
"Until all Australian companies prioritise risk management of their online assets, this will continue."
There have been a series of high-profile cyber attacks in Australia during the past 12 months, targeting multiple companies, including Optus and Medibank.
ABC/AFP
