Cybercriminals have been able to steal sensitive information of nearly 7,000 current and ex-employees of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE).

Last month, a cyber group linked to a Russian-speaking CL0P cyber gang said they managed to hack the Japanese multinational conglomerate and were looking to give the stolen materials to the highest bidder on the dark web.

The group stated they tried to ask for ransom, but Sony refused to cooperate, so the hackers were looking at other ways to monetize. The fraudsters published multiple materials confirming the stolen data was genuine, but whether they managed to sell it on the dark web remains unknown.

They said they would post the stolen data if they didn’t find a buyer. There are no reports of misuse or more specific information about the type of information stolen. Sony has not confirmed whether the SSN and driver’s license numbers were part of the compromised data. 

The cyber security incident likely occurred in May 2023 due to the mass MOVEit Cloud exploit that affected many private and government organizations. The exploit was patched with an update released a few weeks after the incident.

The MOVEit cyber security vulnerability on the company’s managed file transfer software affected multiple global conglomerates and well-known brands such as BBC and American Airlines. Spiceworks reported that over 500 organizations and tens of millions of individuals were somehow affected by the MOVEit vulnerability, which makes it one of the most significant exploitations of a zero-day vulnerability ever.

This month, Sony confirmed that the breach is real and the hackers have sensitive information belonging to thousands of Sony employees. The Japanese multinational conglomerate took care of the leak and reported the issue to the authorities.

Sony also began notifying the affected employees by offering them free credit monitoring and tips on what to do if they receive a fraud alert. Former and current employees are not the only ones affected by the breach – details of family members of Sony employees are also included in the leak. 

Sony is not new to data leaks and often becomes a target of cybercriminals. In 2011, hackers managed to steal the info of millions of customers and briefly stop parts of the PlayStation network.

Luckily, this is not the case this time, as no information belonging to customers and business partners was stolen. Sony has stated that the breach has not affected the company’s everyday operations.