It’s been confirmed that game publisher Bandai Namco’s servers have been hacked by a ransomware group, and that there’s a chance that customer information may have been amongst the data which was accessed.
This comes after vx-underground (which claims to be “the largest collection of malware source code, samples, and papers on the internet”), took to Twitter on Monday (11 July), saying: “ALPHV ransomware group (alternatively referred to as BlackCat ransomware group) claims to have ransomed Bandai Namco.” Now, the Dark Souls publisher has confirmed the situation in a statement released to VGC.
“On July 3, 2022, Bandai Namco Holdings Inc. confirmed that it experienced an unauthorised access by third party to the internal systems of several Group companies in Asian regions (excluding Japan),” it reads (via VGC). “After we confirmed the unauthorised access, we have taken measures such as blocking access to the servers to prevent the damage from spreading.
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“In addition, there is a possibility that customer information related to the Toys and Hobby Business in Asian regions (excluding Japan) was included in the servers and PCs, and we are currently identifying the status about existence of leakage, scope of the damage, and investigating the cause,” it continues. “We will continue to investigate the cause of this incident and will disclose the investigation results as appropriate. We will also work with external organisations to strengthen security throughout the Group and take measures to prevent recurrence. We offer our sincerest apologies to everyone involved for any complications or concerns caused by this incident.”
As VGC writes, ransomware is a form of malware which is used by criminals to demand money from their victims, often by threatening to publish their data or block the victim’s access to it through encryption until they pay the ransom. Needless to say, it’s really serious stuff, and based on Bandai Namco’s statement, it seems that the situation could still be ongoing.
Topics: Bandai Namco