A data leak involving electronic retail chain The Gioi Di Dong (Mobile World) has cast doubt over the way the local company handles customer info.
On November 7, a host of online forums and Facebook users in Vietnam were circulating a few screenshots indicating a major data breach at Mobile World, including personal particulars of past customers, staff emails and customers’ bankcard information, reports Tuoi Tre.
The leak originated from a user named Erwincho of online forum RaidForums. Earlier this month, the user posted three text files, claiming that they’re a “database dump, belonging to one of Vietnam’s largest resellers – Mobile World JSC (best known for their brand – Thegioididong.com).”
One of the files contains 61,000 email addresses ending with “@thegioididong.com,” which are commonly associated with the brand’s employees. Another file includes details of bankcards and transactions made by 5.4 million customers of Mobile World since 2016. However, six numbers of the cards are obscured.
“This is just the basic data, the full version will contain more information. Follow up,” the forum user commented, adding that the files are just “teasers” for those interested in purchasing the full version.
Mobile World has since dismissed the hack as “fake news,” assuring media sources and customers that its data is still safe. “Currently our information systems are still operating normally, unaffected [by the breach],” Dang Thanh Phong, head of Mobile World’s Public Relations department told Tuoi Tre.
Phong explained that the card information listed in the files couldn’t have come from Mobile World as the brand doesn’t store those details. When a payment is made via a card reader at Mobile World stores, data is transferred directly to the bank. Similarly, when a customer purchases a device via its online store, the site redirects them to a third-party payment process. Thus, Phong concluded that the photos are fake.
