Following a significant breach last week, the New Zealand government has formally demanded that Australian telecoms provider Optus pay for new passports.
One of Australia’s largest breaches is thought to have resulted in thieves gaining access to the organization’s customer data.
The business had previously issued warnings that, in the “worst case scenario,” the hack might have exposed the data of up to 9.8 million clients.
Names, contact information, driver’s licence numbers, and passport numbers were among the data exposed as a result of the incident.
At least ten customers with New Zealand passports are known to have have had their data posted online, and many more have received emails from Optus warning them that their information has been put at risk.
The business has promised to replace Australian passports, but has said nothing about foreign passports.
Internal Affairs Minister Jan Tinetti told 1News that the moment had come for the business to make good on its debt.
Since the Kiwi customers were not at fault for their predicament, she believed it would be fair and acceptable for Optus to support them.
Optus stated it is “working with the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs on how we can support our current and past impacted customers from New Zealand” but would not guarantee that it would pay for replacements today.
What ought you to do?
The New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs advises those who are impacted to review the IDCARE website’s instructions and keep up with the news provided by Optus on their website.
If a consumer has been impacted, Optus says it will reach out to them through SMS or email and offer them a 12-month membership to Equifax Protect credit monitoring.
A potential class action lawsuit against the telecommunications corporation on behalf of customers is also being investigated, according to the Australian legal firm Slater and Gordon.
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