1.3m people hit by new Orange hack

THE personal details of 1.3million people in France were stolen when telecoms giant Orange was hacked for the second time this year.

In a message posted on its website the company said it had, “found an illegitimate access to an email and SMS-sending platform” used in its marketing campaigns.

As a result “a limited amount of personal data” has fallen into the hands of hackers, it said.

Information stolen included names, email addresses, mobile and landline numbers, and dates of birth.

Bank details were not compromised, Orange said.

But hackers did gain access to some details of customers of other operators, held by Orange for marketing purposes.

After first saying that “tens of thousands” had been affected in the latest attack, which took place in April, a spokesman said that the details of 1.3m people had been stolen, and that these people should be wary of possible “phishing” emails.

Phishing is used by criminals to con victims into supplying key personal data, including bank account details and passwords by sending emails that look as if they have come from official sources.

Those who respond to them supply their personal details, only to discover later that they have been conned.

The company said that it had informed all affected people on Monday via email. The message contains a link "click to call back" button. Anyone who clicks the link will receive a call from Orange within 48 hours.

Orange was hacked on April 18. It took the company until May 5 to find out how many people had been affected and “lock” the technical network.

In January, Orange sent letters to 800,000 customers after hackers gained access to their personal details.

According to IT security specialist Kaspersky, France is among the top 10 countries likely to be targeted by hackers. In January 2013, EDF received 40,000 reports of suspicious emails.

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