Mobile network Google Fi has had customer data stolen via a breach. The company has stated that its partnership with T-Mobile, which was also recently hacked, is what caused the incident.
Google Fi Suffers a Data Breach
Google Fi, an American mobile network, has confirmed that it has suffered a data breach resulting in the theft of customer information.
In January 2023, telecommunications giant T-Mobile was hacked, and 37 million customers' information was stolen. This made headlines, but things didn't stop there. It now appears that Google Fi has also suffered as a result of this breach, as T-Mobile is one of its main network providers.
On Monday, January 30th, Google Fi customers were sent an email about the breach (as reported by Android Police). In the email, it was stated that "the primary network provider for Google Fi recently informed us there has been suspicious activity relating to a third party system that contains a limited amount of Google Fi customer data."
Users have taken to Reddit to further discuss this breach. One author wrote that "T-Mobile already leaked my Name, DOB, SS#, home address and DL# in their 2021 incident. It’s very difficult for me to understand how this can continue happening." Another user expressed that "companies don't want to pay for security."
Google Fi Confirms That the Breached Data Is Limited
In the aforementioned email, Google Fi reassured customers that only limited information was exposed to the malicious operators in this breach. Google Fi wrote that the compromised data "does not contain your name, date of birth, email address, payment card information, social security number or tax IDs, driver's license or other form of government ID, or financial account information, passwords or PINs that you may use for Google Fi, or the contents of any SMS messages or calls."
This is certainly good news for Google Fi users, but certain information was still accessed, including SIM card serial numbers. In the Reddit thread discussing the incident, the original post author questioned what could be done with such data, particularly whether a "simjack" (a form of identity theft) would be possible.
T-Mobile Breaches Continue to Worry Customers
T-Mobile data breaches are nothing new, with the company suffering five hacks since 2018 alone. These ongoing breaches are a very pressing concern for T-Mobile's 113 million customers, especially when highly sensitive information is being accessed.
The January 2023 hack of T-Mobile exposed customers' names, email addresses, billing addresses, account numbers, and plan details, which is a major risk. The ramifications of this breach are yet to be seen, but the exposure of such highly sensitive information could spell bad news for many.
This Hack May Push T-Mobile to Take Action
Given the millions that were affected by this most recent T-Mobile hack, we may see the company make major moves to improve the integrity of its security measures. But time will tell on this one. For now, we can only hope that Google Fi's customers won't be too severely affected by this breach.