Week 19, 2024 security incident report

Hongik University emails out personal data of around 12,000 students

12kImpact: Personal information, including names and email addresses, of around 12,000 students

A file containing personal information, including names and email addresses, of around 12,000 Hongik University students was emailed to other students. The leak occurred when an insider at the contractor responsible for safety training made an error while sending notices about completing research safety training.

Malware on Sungsimdang online shop leads to Naver account phishing

191Impact: An estimated 191 people may have had accounts compromised over about one hour

Malware was planted on Sungsimdang's online shop, redirecting visitors to a phishing site that mimicked Naver's login page. A security firm said an estimated 191 people may have had their accounts compromised over about one hour. Police launched an investigation.

Riot Games issues statement on repeated DDoS attacks

Riot Games issued a statement on a series of DDoS attacks. The specific extent of the damage and the response measures have not been confirmed.

65,000 personal data records leaked from open chat rooms

65kImpact: 65,000 personal data records

65,000 records of personal information were leaked from open chat rooms. When the leak occurred and any follow-up response have not been confirmed.

Ascension ransomware attack exposes medical data of 5.6 million

5.6mImpact: Medical information of 5.6 million people leaked and clinical operations disrupted

US healthcare organisation Ascension was hit by a ransomware attack in May 2024, disrupting clinical operations and access to electronic health records and forcing it to suspend some non-emergency procedures. It was confirmed that an employee had mistakenly downloaded a malicious file and that data had been leaked in a Black Basta ransomware attack. Access to electronic health records was restored in some regions in June, and it was later confirmed that the medical information of 5.6 million people had been leaked. In September 2025, a court ruled to allow a related class action to proceed.

UK Ministry of Defence payroll system breach exposes armed forces' bank details

272kImpact: Personal data including bank details of up to 272,000 serving personnel and recent veterans

An external payroll system used by the UK Ministry of Defence was hacked, exposing personal data including bank details of up to 272,000 serving personnel and recent veterans. The UK government attributed it to an attack by a malicious actor and did not rule out state involvement. It later emerged that the company operating the system had not reported the breach for months.

Christie's ransomware attack leaks customer data and disrupts auctions

45kImpact: Personal data of 45,000 people leaked, including 620 Korean members; website outage and some auctions postponed

Christie's was hit by a ransomware attack in May 2024 that took its website offline and forced some auctions to be postponed. RansomHub claimed to have stolen customer data and threatened to publish it, and Christie's put the number of people whose personal data was affected at 45,000. A class action was subsequently brought, and a penalty of 280 million won was imposed over the leak of personal data of 620 Korean members.

Dell leaks customer addresses and other data; attacker claims 49 million records stolen

49mImpact: Leak of customer addresses and other data; attacker claims 49 million customer records

Dell disclosed a breach of a database containing customers' physical addresses and other information, and notified customers. The attacker claimed to have stolen 49 million customer records by abusing an API. A lawsuit was subsequently filed, and Ireland's data protection regulator opened an investigation.

Ransomware attack shuts down city network in Wichita

Impact: City network and multiple municipal services shut down; law enforcement data stolen

The city of Wichita, Kansas, shut down its network and systems after a ransomware attack. Several city services, including fire and police operations, were affected, and law enforcement data was also stolen. LockBit claimed responsibility for the attack.