Breach Database / Experian (South Africa)
Yes — Experian (South Africa) was breached.
- 1.3 million accounts affected
- Breach occurred 2020-08-19
- Verified entry in the Have I Been Pwned catalog
What happened
In August 2020, Experian South Africa suffered a data breach which exposed the personal information of tens of millions of individuals. Only 1.3M of the records contained email addresses, whilst most contained government issued identity numbers, names, addresses, occupations and employers, amongst other person information.
What data was exposed
- Email addresses
- Employers
- Government issued IDs
- Names
- Occupations
- Phone numbers
What to do right now
- Freeze your credit. A credit freeze at the major bureaus is free and blocks new accounts from being opened in your name.
- Be alert for smishing and SIM-swap attempts. Treat unexpected texts and "carrier" calls with suspicion; add a PIN/port-freeze with your mobile carrier.
- Expect convincing phishing emails. Attackers use breached details to write personalized emails. Be suspicious of any message referencing this service.
- Check your other accounts on Have I Been Pwned. Your email address may appear in other breaches you don't know about yet.
- Monitor the apps you use going forward. Clearly watches the breach record for the companies behind your apps and alerts you the moment one appears.
Breach data from Have I Been Pwned. Listing here means the service appears in the public breach record — not that your personal data was affected.