Orange Group, one of France’s biggest telecom companies, has suffered a serious cyberattack. A hacker has claimed responsibility for breaking into the company’s systems and stealing thousands of internal documents, including sensitive customer and employee data.
The attack mainly targeted Orange Romania, a branch of the telecom giant. The hacker, who goes by the name Rey, says they managed to stay inside Orange’s systems for over a month without being detected. After failing to extort the company, Rey leaked details about the stolen information online.
Orange Group has confirmed that a cyberattack took place but assured that it only affected a non-critical application. However, leaked samples suggest that the stolen data includes email addresses, contracts, invoices, customer records, and even partial payment card details.
Hacker Claims to Have Stolen 6.5GB of Data
The hacker says they managed to take around 6.5GB of internal data from Orange Romania, spread across nearly 12,000 files. Some of the stolen data includes:
- 380,000 email addresses (from employees, former workers, partners, and contractors)
- Source code from Orange’s internal systems
- Invoices and contracts
- Customer and employee records
- Partial payment card details of Orange Romania customers
- Email addresses and names of Yoxo customers (Orange’s subscription-based service)
Some of the stolen information appears to be outdated. For example, some leaked email addresses belong to people who left Orange Romania more than five years ago. Many of the leaked payment card details have also expired.
However, even outdated data can still be dangerous. Cybercriminals can use it to launch phishing attacks, where they try to trick people into giving away more personal details or money.
How the Hacker Got Inside Orange’s Systems
The hacker, Rey, claims they broke into Orange’s systems by using stolen login credentials. They also found weaknesses in Orange’s Jira software, a tool used for tracking tasks and managing projects.
Rey says they had access to Orange Romania’s systems for over a month without anyone noticing. Then, on a Sunday morning, they began extracting data, a process that reportedly lasted three hours without triggering Orange’s security alerts.
Once the data was stolen, the hacker left behind a ransom note, demanding money in exchange for keeping the information private. But Orange Group did not respond to the demand. Since the company refused to pay, the hacker leaked the stolen data online.
Orange Group Responds to the Cyberattack
After the hacker publicly shared details about the stolen data, Orange Group released a statement confirming that they had suffered a cyberattack.
“Orange can confirm that our operations in Romania have been the target of a cyberattack. We took immediate action, and our top priority remains protecting the data and interests of our employees, customers, and partners,” the company said.
Orange also assured that the attack did not impact customer operations and that it was limited to a non-critical back-office application.
The company says its cybersecurity teams are investigating the breach and working to minimize the damage. However, they have not yet said whether they will notify affected individuals or introduce new security measures.
Meanwhile, cybersecurity experts warn Orange customers and employees to stay alert for possible phishing scams or fraud attempts using the stolen data.
This data breach highlights the constant threats that major companies face from cybercriminals. Attackers continue to find weaknesses in security systems, making it crucial for businesses to stay vigilant and strengthen their defenses against cyberattacks.
