Navi Mumbai: A month after cybercriminals hacked the centralised computer server of SBI (State Bank of India) Global IT Centre in CBD-Belapur and stole confidential files, including 3.75 lakh bank records, application data and 4,280 customer records, among other files, an FIR was registered at the CBD-Belapur police station. While the incident occurred between Oct 10 and 15, the bank registered a complaint on Nov 12.SPI Arun Pawar said, “Bank officials immediately noticed that the stolen bank data was posted on the dark web, after which the bank’s internal team conducted an inquiry. The officials said they removed the stolen data from the dark web and ensured that it had not been misused. As the data was stolen, the bank registered an FIR on Nov 12 for the police to conduct further probe to trace the accused.”According to the complaint, unknown persons, using the hacker group ‘Siriusim’, illegally accessed the server at SBI Global IT Centre (GITC). The hackers stole approximately 32 CSV (comma-separated values; a file which allows data to be saved in a table-structured format) files with 3.75 lakh records in CSV format from State Bank of India applications, JSON files (JavaScript Object Notation, text format for storing and exchanging data) and 2,721 PDF files containing Personally Identifiable Information (PII). These included personal details of SBI customers, loan application records, account opening applications, contact information and addresses. Thereafter, the hackers published some of the stolen data on the dark web, disseminating sensitive or confidential information of SBI and its customers.Prashant Mali, cybersecurity and privacy expert lawyer, said, “Even if a bank claims stolen data has been removed from the dark web and not been misused, there is a possibility that the hackers might have sold it to the highest bidder. In any case, SBI customers need to be extra vigilant about phishing and other cyber attacks.”Police have invoked BNS sections that prescribe punishment for simple theft and criminal conspiracy along with sections of the Information Technology Act. The accused named in the FIR are unknown persons using a hacker group and an IP address.
