Luxury brands Gucci, Balenciaga, and Alexander McQueen have fallen victim to a cyber attack, leading to the potential theft of millions of customer’s private details. The assault targeted Kering, the French corporation that owns these prestigious labels.
Kering recognized and confirmed the breach but did not publicly name the brands impacted. In a statement made in June, they reported that “an unauthorized third party momentarily gained access to our systems and accessed limited customer data from some of our Houses”.
This incident is not an isolated event but seems to be part of a broader trend impacting luxury brands and retailers throughout the year. Other brands that suffered similar breaches include Cartier, owned by Richemont, and labels under LVMH. In July, a data leak affecting approximately 419,000 customers at LVMH’s Louis Vuitton was being investigated by Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog.
The stolen customer data reportedly includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, addresses, and the total amounts spent at the brands’ stores. Notably, Kering has reassured that no financial information, such as credit card or bank account numbers, was stolen during the attack.
The hackers, referring to themselves as “Shiny Hunters,” allege to have data associated with 7.4 million unique email addresses.
In response to the breach, Kering stated that its brands promptly reported the incident to the relevant authorities and notified customers in accordance with local regulations. However, Kering did not provide a response when questioned about the countries impacted by the cyber attack.
Questions & Answers
What brands were affected by the cyber attack?
The affected brands include luxury labels Gucci, Balenciaga, and Alexander McQueen, all owned by French parent company Kering.
What kind of customer information was stolen during the breach?
Reportedly, the stolen client data includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, addresses and the total amounts spent at the brands’ stores. However, no financial information like credit card or bank account numbers were compromised.
How did Kering respond to the cyber attack?
Kering reported that its brands immediately disclosed the breach to relevant authorities and notified customers as per local regulations. However, they did not comment on the specific countries affected by the attack.
