1 week Ago By Naveen Athrappully
American car rental firm Avis revealed it recently suffered a data breach, with the attackers gaining access to personal data belonging to customers. The firm did not reveal how many people nationwide were affected by the breach. “After becoming aware of the incident, we immediately took steps to end the unauthorized access, began an investigation with assistance from cybersecurity experts, and alerted the relevant authorities,” Avis said.
Avis asked customers to “remain vigilant against threats of identity theft or fraud. You can do this by regularly reviewing and monitoring your account statements and credit history for any signs of unauthorized transactions or activity. You can contact the credit reporting agencies if you suspect any unauthorized activity.
” The company is offering affected individuals free credit monitoring services from Equifax for one year. The service provides identity detection and helps to resolve identity theft issues, it said. Affected customers are required to sign up by Dec.
31. The company said it is working with cybersecurity experts to boost security protections for the business application impacted by the hack. Additional safeguards have been implemented into the firm’s system, with Avis “actively reviewing” its security monitoring and controls.
The Epoch Times reached out to Avis for comment. Over past years, cybersecurity risks in the industry have grown from experimental hacks to large-scale attacks, with the number and scale of cyber incidents rising “significantly” to the extent that it threatens the safety of the vehicle and the passengers, Upstream noted. “The number of high and massive-scale incidents more than doubled between 2022 and 2023, the report said.
“High and massive-scale attacks can potentially impact up to millions of mobility assets (e.g. vehicles, charging stations, companion apps, backend systems),” it said.
Upstream called electric vehicle (EV) charging a “growing threat frontier,” with charging stations becoming a “battleground for attacks.” At present, EVs make up around 15 percent of new car sales globally. By 2040, EVs are expected to gain the “majority of market share,” Upstream said.
“Cyber-attacks on charging stations can be prevented to a large extent through proper security measures and protocols. While it’s challenging to achieve 100 percent prevention, proactive steps can significantly reduce the risk of attacks,” he said..
