Bell apologizes to 1.9 million customers after major security breach

May 16 2017, 8:56 pm

Bell Canada has issued an apology after a massive security breach affected its system on Monday.

According to the telecommunications giant, on May 15, an investigation determined that an anonymous hacker illegally accessed customer information. The information contained approximately 1.9 million active email addresses, as well as 1,700 names and active phone numbers.

Bell says that there is no indication that any financial, password or other sensitive personal information was accessed by the unknown hacker, and has apologized to its customers in a statement.

“We apologize to Bell customers for this situation and are contacting all those affected,” stated the company. “Bell has been working closely with the RCMP cyber crime unit in its investigation and has informed the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.”

While the investigation continues, Bell said that the incident is not connected to the recent global WannaCry malware attacks, which took place last Friday.

And for Bell customers who haven’t heard from the company yet, if you haven’t been contacted by end of day May 16, your information was not accessed, they said.

In light of the recent attack, Bell said that general precautions can protect personal data.

“Please note that Bell will never ask customers for credit card or other personal information by e-mail,” they said. “Be cautious of unsolicited or suspicious communications asking for any personal information or that refer you to web sites that may ask for personal information.”

Additionally, customers are asked to avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from unknown emails.

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