‘We will not pay a ransom’: Latitude refuses cyber criminals

It is estimated 6.1 million records dating back to 2005 were also stolen and around 94 per cent of those documents were provided before 2013. Those records included “some but not all” personal information including names, addresses, telephone numbers, and dates of birth.

The legitimacy of the ransom demand has been backed by the fact that the stolen data the attackers have detailed as part of their ransom threat is “consistent with the number of affected customers disclosed by Latitude”. 

The size of the ransom has not been disclosed but Latitude has revealed it will not pay it.

According to the ASX-listed lender, the decision to refuse payment is consistent with the position of the Australian government.

It said it is refusing to pay the ransom as it does not want to “reward criminal behaviour” and added that it does not believe that paying the ransom would result in the return or destruction of the information that was stolen.

“Latitude will not pay a ransom to criminals,” Latitude’s new CEO Bob Belan said.

“Based on the evidence and advice, there is simply no guarantee that doing so would result in any customer data being destroyed and it would only encourage further extortion attempts on Australian and New Zealand businesses in the future,” he continued.

“Our priority remains on contacting every customer whose personal information was compromised and to support them through this process. In parallel, our teams have been focused on safely restoring our IT systems, bringing staffing levels back to full capacity, enhancing security protections and returning to normal operations.

“I apologise personally and sincerely for the distress that this cyber attack has caused and I hope that in time, we are able to earn back the confidence of our customers.”

According to the lender, no suspicious activity has been found inside Latitude’s systems since Thursday, 16 March 2023.

Following the attack, the lender had taken itself offline and stopped accepting new customers. However, business operations are now being restored.

New customer originations have recommenced and Latitude’s primary Customer Contact Centre is now back online and operating at full capacity. Customers can also now access services via the Latitude website and mobile app.

The lender is currently in the process of contacting all customers, past customers and applicants whose information was compromised, outlining details of the information stolen, the support it is providing and its plans for remediation.

The matter is under investigation by the Australian Federal Police and Latitude continues to work with the Australian Cyber Security Centre and cyber security experts on its response.

According to Latitude, it is undertaking a “comprehensive customer care and remediation program to support affected individuals”.

[Related: Non-bank goes offline following ‘large-scale information theft’]