The California Office of the Attorney General disclosed that **ABB, Inc.** suffered a data breach on **August 25, 2017**, stemming from suspicious login activity in an employee’s email account. The incident exposed sensitive personal information, including **names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and medical records** of an unspecified number of individuals. While the exact scale of the breach remains undisclosed, the compromised data suggests a significant risk of identity theft or fraud. In response, ABB offered **one year of identity monitoring services** to affected parties, indicating an effort to mitigate potential harm. The breach highlights vulnerabilities in employee account security, raising concerns about unauthorized access to highly confidential data. The exposure of medical records further escalates the severity, as such information is often targeted for exploitation in cybercrime schemes.
Source: https://oag.ca.gov/ecrime/databreach/reports/sb24-101735
TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/abb
"id": "abb225090125",
"linkid": "abb",
"type": "Breach",
"date": "8/2017",
"severity": "85",
"impact": "4",
"explanation": "Attack with significant impact with customers data leaks"{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': 'Unspecified',
'industry': 'Engineering, Technology, and Automation',
'location': 'California, USA (HQ: Switzerland)',
'name': 'ABB, Inc.',
'type': 'Corporation'}],
'attack_vector': 'Compromised Email Account (Suspicious Login Activity)',
'customer_advisories': ['One year of identity monitoring services offered to '
'affected individuals'],
'data_breach': {'number_of_records_exposed': 'Unspecified',
'personally_identifiable_information': ['Names',
'Addresses',
'Social Security '
'Numbers',
'Medical Records'],
'sensitivity_of_data': 'High',
'type_of_data_compromised': ['Personally Identifiable '
'Information (PII)',
'Protected Health Information '
'(PHI)']},
'date_detected': '2017-08-25',
'description': 'The California Office of the Attorney General reported that '
'ABB, Inc. experienced a data breach involving suspicious '
"login activity to an employee's email account on August 25, "
'2017. The breach potentially exposed personal information '
'including names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and '
'medical records, affecting an unspecified number of '
'individuals. ABB is offering one year of identity monitoring '
'services as a response to the incident.',
'impact': {'data_compromised': ['Names',
'Addresses',
'Social Security Numbers',
'Medical Records'],
'identity_theft_risk': 'High (PII and medical records exposed)',
'systems_affected': ['Employee Email Account']},
'initial_access_broker': {'entry_point': 'Compromised employee email account'},
'references': [{'source': 'California Office of the Attorney General'}],
'regulatory_compliance': {'regulatory_notifications': ['Reported to the '
'California Office of '
'the Attorney '
'General']},
'response': {'remediation_measures': ['Offered one year of identity '
'monitoring services to affected '
'individuals']},
'title': 'ABB, Inc. Data Breach via Suspicious Email Login Activity',
'type': 'Data Breach'}