Getty ImagesPersonal data of hundreds of Australians has been posted online after it was stolen from one of the country’s largest health insurers.
Some health claims data – including medical procedure history – was released, along with names, addresses, birthdates and government ID numbers.
The data of 9.7 million Medibank customers was stolen last month.
But a sample was released on Wednesday after the insurer refused to pay a ransom.
More data will be posted soon, the group claiming responsibility has said.
It comes amid a string of high-profile data breaches in Australia.
While millions had their data stolen, Medibank says the most serious breach was for around 500,000 customers who have had private health information taken.
No credit card or banking details were accessed, they said.
Medibank apologised for the situation and said it would work “around the clock” to inform customers whose information has been published.
“This is a criminal act designed to harm our customers and cause distress,” chief executive David Koczkar said.
“We take seriously our responsibility to safeguard our customers and we stand ready to support them.”
In September Australian telecommunications giant Optus was also targeted for extortion, after the personal data of about 10 million customers was stolen in what the company called a cyber-attack.
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