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Sweden’s prosecutor’s office announced on Tuesday that the personal data of 1.5 million individuals had been exposed online following a cyberattack on a tech systems provider.
According to Swedish media reports, both municipal councils and private firms were impacted.
The affected population accounts for nearly 15% of Sweden’s total 10.6 million residents.
The breach targeted Miljodata, the systems provider, during the weekend of August 23-24, the prosecutor’s office stated.
“The data obtained through the attack on the provider has now been leaked,” said prosecutor Sandra Helgadottir. “This involves information related to more than 1.5 million private citizens.” She noted that investigations into the breach are still underway.
Helgadottir added that a group called Datacarry claimed responsibility, and authorities are focusing on pinpointing those responsible.
“Currently, there’s no evidence to suggest foreign state involvement,” she emphasized.
Reports indicated that the hackers demanded approximately 1.5 Bitcoin (about $170,000) in ransom, threatening to publish the data otherwise.
Miljodata confirmed over the weekend that the stolen information was posted on the dark web.
The leaked data includes names, addresses, and contact details of individuals.
The Swedish Privacy Protection Agency reported receiving 250 complaints from those affected by late August.
The agency identified that at least 164 municipalities and four regional governments were impacted by this incident.
Swedish broadcaster SVT noted that employees, particularly in Gothenburg, had been targeted.
Several private companies, such as Volvo Trucks, SAS Airlines, and GKN Aerospace, also reported data breaches linked to this cyberattack.
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