Former Tesla Employee Takes 100 GB of Confidential Data in Serious Data Breach

Tesla, one of the leading electronic vehicle manufacturers in the world today, recently suffered from a massive data breach that resulted in extensive data being released to the public. The company employs more than 127,000 individuals and has an annual revenue of $81.46 billion. A huge amount of employee data and proprietary technological information is held on the Tesla file servers, and allowing it to be hacked and released to the public is a huge security misstep. 

How Did the Attack Occur?

A former Tesla employee that served as a service technician stole the data and released it. The technician got away with more than 100 GB of data, including some very confidential documents and data points. The attack occurred quickly, and the employee will be sued for their actions. We don't know exactly how the technician was able to access all the information and get a copy of it, but we suspect that the IT credentials held by the individual were enough to enable them to get in, make copies, and get out. It's difficult for technicians to do their jobs properly without giving them increased access to files and documents, but it's likely this technician still did a bit of hacking to get access to the wide variety of protected documents they were able to steal. 

What Information Was Viewed or Stolen?

Among the 100 GB of files taken from Tesla, there were some very delicate data points. Employee email addresses, salaries, bank details, phone numbers, and Social Security numbers were taken. Even CEO Elon Musk's Social Security number was taken in the data breach. More than 100,000 individuals were impacted by this breach, and it's likely that wide-scale damage will occur because of this leaked information. 

How Did Tesla Admit to the Breach?

The breach was detected by a Dutch cybersecurity and threat reporting agency. Tesla has yet to comment about the breach, but it's likely that documents will be going out to employees as well as to government agencies to ensure everyone that needs to know is made aware of exactly what happened during the data breach. 

What Will Become of the Stolen Information?

While we can't speak for the attacker, the stolen Tesla data is likely to be sold to other companies, used for future cyber attacks, and utilized for fraudulent activities and identity theft. If the information is released publicly, it will be abused by a large number of people, and anyone involved will have to take steps to protect themselves. 

What Should Affected Parties Do in the Aftermath of the Breach?

If you receive a notice that your data was involved in this Tesla breach, you should consider canceling the financial accounts linked to the breach or at least monitoring the accounts closely. You should also invest in identity theft protection services or credit monitoring services to keep yourself safe. Be careful about the emails you respond to as well, and never supply anyone with confidential information via email.