Getty Images / Tero Vesalainen
Another day, and another data breach where data was stolen. According to a statement from AT&T sent out Friday (July 12), the call and text message records of nearly all of the company's cellular customers were exposed in a data breach. Here's how to know if your data was stolen and what to do about it.
AT&T: How to Know If Your Data Was Stolen
In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday, AT&T said it discovered in April that customer data was illegally downloaded from an AT&T workspace, and that data went onto a third-party cloud platform. AT&T also said it's currently working with law enforcement to arrest those who are responsible for this happening and that they've already apprehended at least one party involved. "We have an ongoing investigation into the AT&T breach and we're coordinating with our law enforcement partners," the Federal Communications Commission said on social media.
If you're an AT&T customer, you're likely worried about this data breach and want to know if your data was stolen. So, how do you know if you were affected and what to do if you were impacted. According to AT&T's SEC filing, the data breach happened with records of customer call and text interactions that took place approximately between May 1 and October 31, 2022. AT&T also said the compromised data also includes records from January 2, 2023, but those are for a "very small number of customers." On top of the cellular customers, customers of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that use AT&T's wireless network and AT&T landline customers who interacted with these cellular numbers were also part of the breach.
The good news is that according to AT&T, "the data does not contain the content of calls or texts, personal information such as Social Security numbers, dates of birth, or other personally identifiable information." They added that, "It also does not include some typical information you see in your usage details, such as the time stamp of calls or texts."
So, what do you do if you're impacted? AT&T says that customers should be very careful when it comes to any phone call or text request asking you for personal, account or credit card details. Also, if you think you have suspicious text activity, they say to forward the text to AT&T. Also, forwarded messages are free. Also, if you think that you're dealing with fraud on your AT&T wireless number, tell AT&T's fraud team. If you think there's fraud on another account, call the customer service number on your bill. Of course, don't open text messages from anyone you don't know and trust, and don't reply to text messages from unknown senders. Keep reading below for information on some new scams going around.
