have British police launched an investigation into a "significant and ongoing cyberattack" on the website of British telecommunications group TalkTalk, the company said on Wednesday.
Information such as names, addresses, dates of birth, phone numbers, email addresses, TalkTalk account details, credit card and bank account details may have been compromised in the attack.
TalkTalk said the attack took place on Wednesday and was made public on Thursday. The Metropolitan Police's Cyber Unit in the UKis investigating the case.
"TalkTalk is constantly updating its systems to ensure they are as secure as possible, as the rapidly evolving threat of cybercrime impacts a growing number of individuals and organisations. We take any threat to the security of our customers' data very seriously and are taking all necessary steps to investigate and understand what has happened in this case," TalkTalk CEO Dido Harding said in a statement.
"As a precautionary measure, we are in contact with all our customers, immediately providing them with the information they request, support and advice surrounding yesterday's attack.".
In a letter to customers, the telecoms group said it had “taken all necessary steps” to make its website secure. It also said it had contacted major banks, who will be monitoring their customers’ accounts for any suspicious activity. TalkTalk added that it was looking to set up a free credit monitoring scheme for a year for all its customers and would inform those concerned immediately.
