Criminals may have stolen data from 11 million Americans in hack

Criminals may have stolen data from millions of Americans by breaking into an insurance company. They probably struck in May last year. Only now does the insurer bring the news out.

According to the health insurer, Premera, the attackers gained access to the company’s systems through an “advanced attack”. This may have enabled them to access the data of customers, employees and business relations. This includes names, email addresses, telephone numbers, bank details, medical data and social security numbers.

The attackers probably struck in May last year, but Premera only discovered the hack in January. The company has only just announced the attack for unknown reasons. The FBI and security company Mandiant, which previously investigated the extensive hack at Sony, are investigating what exactly happened. The attackers may have stolen the data of 11 million customers, according to Reuters.

Premera has apologized for the hack. It informs customers in an email and has also set up a call center where worried customers can call. The health insurer also offers two years of free protection against identity theft.