Data breach at Australian hardware retailer Total Tools impacted 38,000 customers

Australian hardware and tools retailer Total Tools recently experienced a data security incident that reportedly compromised the sensitive personal information of close to 40,000 customers.

 

In a letter shared with the affected customers, Total Tools said that it recently became aware of suspicious activity on its website and launched an investigation to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

 

 

The investigation revealed that the sensitive personal information of its customers, including their names, registered email addresses, Total Tools passwords, mobile numbers, shipping addresses and financial information including credit card details were compromised during the incident.

 

While the company is yet to share the number of affected individuals, Cyber Daily reported that almost 38,000 Total Tools customers were impacted by the data security incident.

 

In a statement shared with the media outlet, the company’s CEO Richard Murray has advised customers to take precautions following the incident.

 

“Total Tools’ communications to impacted customers recommended precautions they take to lower the risk of their information being potentially misused.

 

“In addition to contacting impacted customers, Total Tools has also implemented several additional cyber security measures to minimise the likelihood of this occurring again.

 

“As always, the safety of our customers and team members remains our number one priority. We are dedicated to supporting all impacted customers throughout this process and ensuring they can continue to shop in-store and online at Total Tools with confidence. We will update customers if any further relevant information becomes available,” he added.

 

Total Tools has notified the Australian Cyber Security Centre and Office of the Australian Information Commissioner about the incident and is working with the agencies to resolve and recover from the incident at the earliest.

 

At the time of publication, no known hacker group has claimed responsibility for the data security incident, and Total Tools is yet to share whether it suffered a ransomware attack or whether it has been able to identify the perpetrators of the data security incident.