Origin Energy Reports Data Breach Linked to Former Employee

Origin Energy, an Australian energy and internet provider, has reported a data security incident in which a former employee allegedly collected and stole sensitive personal information belonging to around 700 individuals.

 

Australia’s largest energy retailer Origin Energy generates, retails, and supplies electricity, natural gas, and LPG and serves around 4.2 million customers.

 

In a statement to the media, Origin Energy announced that it had recently identified a data security incident involving a former employee who stole sensitive information belonging to around 700 customers. The company’s investigation revealed that the individual accessed and exfiltrated both personal and financial data of affected customers.

 

“We have discovered that a former employee acted in serious breach of our policies, procedures, and the standards we require from our employees when handling customer data,” Origin said.

 

Origin Energy said the former employee gathered the information while working at the company between 12 October 2023 and 30 July 2025. The encrypted file the individual tried to send to their personal account allegedly contained data from 732 customers, including credit and debit card details.

 

“While there is no evidence at this stage that the file was successfully accessed or shared outside of Origin, we take all of our stakeholders’ privacy extremely seriously and are contacting potentially impacted individuals to apologise and provide support, including credit monitoring where applicable, and advice on preventative measures they can take,” Origin added.

 

In a letter to affected customers, the company said that the file was encrypted and therefore unreadable, adding that there is no evidence the data was ever accessed or viewed. Furthermore, the former employee has signed a statutory declaration confirming that the file was deleted.

 

“We have reported this matter to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) and to relevant law enforcement,” Origin added in its statement.