TOKYO (TR) – Monex Securities announced on Wednesday that a third-party system used for managing account applications was hit by a cyberattack, potentially leaking the sensitive personal data of over a million users, reports Jiji Press (Nov. 13).
The brokerage firm revealed that 1,592 images of identity verification documents — including driver’s licenses and My Number social security cards — may have been compromised. While the leaked images of My Number cards are reportedly limited to the front side, with no evidence that the sensitive personal identification numbers on the reverse side were accessed, the scope of the breach is significant.
In addition to the ID images, the company confirmed that up to 1.13 million email addresses were exposed. These addresses belong to individuals who applied for online accounts on or after October 16, 2019.
Monex stated that as of now, there have been no reports of fraudulent transactions or unauthorized account activity resulting from the leaked data. The firm also clarified that more critical information, such as account numbers and login passwords, was stored in a separate database and remains secure.
The unauthorized access was first detected on October 18, prompting the company to sever external connections to the system the following day. Parts of the online account opening service remain suspended as the investigation continues.
