Australian mining giant Northern Minerals suffers a major data breach

Australian mining company Northern Minerals said it experienced a data security incident that compromised the sensitive personal information of current and former personnel and some shareholders.

 

Northern Minerals, which specialises in exploring and mining rare earth minerals including dysprosium and terbium used in electronics, batteries, and aircraft production, said that it became aware of the data security incident in late March. Immediately, the company launched an investigation and engaged external cyber security experts to investigate the matter.

 

It also notified external stakeholders including the Australian Cyber Security Centre and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner about the incident.

 

The investigation revealed that “the exfiltrated data included corporate, operational and financial information and some details relating to current and former personnel and some shareholder information. “The process of notifying relevant impacted individuals is underway and ongoing,” the company said.

 

“The breach has not had a material impact on the Company’s operations or broader systems. Since the breach, the Company has reviewed its processes and implemented actions to further strengthen its systems,” Northern Minerals added.

 

The announcement follows the BianLian ransomware group claiming responsibility for the cyber attack on the company and listing it as a victim on its data leak site. 

 

The group claims to be in possession of 1.65 TB of data stolen from the company that includes operational data, strategic data, potential projects, geological and mining research in various countries, data on research of competitors, R&D data, financial data, employees’ personal data, corporate email archives, and data on shareholders and potential investors.

 

According to BleepingComputer, the hacker group has published the stolen database, indicating that the ransom negotiation with the company has failed. The mining company said it will share more information on the data security incident as and when appropriate.