Hongkong Post online portal hacked, potentially exposing personal data of users
Postal service provider says address book details of EC-Ship account holders were possibly compromised in cyberattack involving ‘robotic access’
An investigation has been launched after Hongkong Post’s online mailing portal was hacked, potentially compromising the personal information of account holders.
The government-owned postal service provider identified the cyberattack that involved robotic access late on Monday, saying address book details of EC-Ship account holders, including names of senders and recipients, phone numbers, fax numbers and email addresses, were possibly exposed.
EC-Ship is a digital platform for people and businesses to prepare and pay for local and international mail services, print shipping labels, manage address books, track shipments and handle bulk mailings.
“According to the investigation, the unauthorised party cyberattacked the system by making countless attempts at midnight on July 20 and the following day to access and retrieve information through the address book function of the EC-Ship system,” Hongkong Post said.
It said it immediately blocked the unauthorised access and that police were investigating the cyberattack, with the exact number of affected accounts and the extent of any personal data leakage still to be determined.
“Upon identification of the incident, Hongkong Post has taken immediate measures to block unauthorised access,” it said.