Original Coverage & Source Attribution: www.teiss.co.uk
Advantest Corporation, a Japanese semiconductor test equipment company, said a ransomware attack earlier this year compromised sensitive personal information belonging to individuals associated with the company.
Advantest Corporation is a Tokyo-based manufacturer and global leader in semiconductor automatic test equipment (ATE) and measuring instruments. Its core products include SoC and memory test systems for DRAM and NAND, test handlers, device interfaces, and more. Its technologies support chips used in 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), high-performance computing (HPC), automotive systems, and IoT.
In a data security notice submitted to the office of California Attorney General, Advantest Corporation said that In February, it detected unauthorised activity on its internal network, disrupting some of its IT systems. The company company immediately launched an investigation, with assistance from external cyber security experts, to determine the nature and scope of the incident.
It also took steps to secure the affected network and notified relevant law enforcement authorities about the incident.
“Preliminary findings appear to indicate that an unauthorised third party may have gained access to portions of the company’s network and deployed ransomware,” Advantest said.
Recently, the company said that its investigation concluded that the threat actor who gained unauthorised access to Advantest’s systems exfiltrated some personal identifiable data from the company’s servers. The compromised data included contact information, dates of birth, social security numbers, national ID numbers, driver’s license numbers, passport numbers, medical information, financial information and more.
It remains unclear whether the compromised information pertains to customers, employees, business partners, or a combination of these groups, as the company has not disclosed further details.
Advantest has advised all affected individuals to regularly monitor their credit reports, account and benefit statements and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement authorities, including the police and the state attorney general.
It has also offered complimentary identity protection and credit monitoring services through Kroll to all affected individuals.
No known threat actor claimed responsibility for the cyber attack at the time of publication. Advantest Corporation also did not share details regarding the perpetrators, the exact volume of exfiltrated data, and whether a ransom demand was made.
