Hong Kong's Correctional Services Department revealed that a hacker illegally accessed its IT system on Tuesday, compromising personal data of 6,800 current and former employees. The department stated there is no evidence of data leakage so far and has notified affected individuals.
Hong Kong's Correctional Services Department announced on Friday evening that a hacker had gained illegal access to one of its IT systems on Tuesday.
"After a preliminary investigation, the Correctional Services Department believes the incident involved unauthorised access to the internal Knowledge Management System by a hacker, through which the hacker then gained entry to another IT system maintaining personal data of [the department] staff," it said.
The breach affected 6,800 current and former employees, compromising their names, gender, date of birth, academic qualifications, employment history in the department, and email addresses, the department added.
It stressed that there was no evidence so far suggesting the data had been leaked or disclosed. The department informed all potentially affected individuals of the situation and reminded them to report any suspicious circumstances to police as soon as possible.
It also reported the case to police, the Security Bureau, the city's privacy watchdog, and the Digital Policy Office.