23andMe data breach Hackers accessed data of 69 million users

pShareppFILE In this photo illustration 23andMe logo of a biotechnology company is seen on a smartphone and a pc screen in the background Pavlo GoncharSOPA ImagesLightRocket via Getty Imagespp23andMe a company that does genetic testing and traces ancestry through shared DNA confirmed to FOX TV Stations on Monday that hackers accessed personal data of about 01 of customers which amounts to roughly 14000 people who have used 23andMe ppHackers were able to breach those accounts because the customers had used the same username and password on 23andMe as they had on other websites that had been previously compromised ppBecause the threat actor was able to access the personal data of those 14000 customers the hackers were also able to access information of about 55 million DNA Relatives profile files as well as 14 million Family Tree profiles a company spokesperson told FOX ppInformation that could have been accessed through the Family Tree profiles or the DNA Relatives profiles included display names relationship labels percentage of DNA shared with DNA relative matches ancestry reports selfreported locations birth locations birth year family names and anything else they may have been included in the Introduce yourself section of a users DNA Relatives profile ppThe company said it has concluded its investigation of the breach and will be notifying affected customers ppWe have taken steps to further protect customer data including requiring all existing customers to reset their password and requiring twostep verification for all new and existing customers The company will continue to invest in protecting our systems and data 23andMe said in a blog post pp23andMe also noted it had no indication that there had been a breach or data security incident within its systems or that the company was the source of the account credentials used in these attacks ppThis latest update comes a little over a month after the company initially announced the data breach in October of this year ppThe Californiabased company founded in 2006 said it conducts routine monitoring and auditing of its systems to ensure that your data is protected It said it has urged multifactor authentication among its users for years a method it reiterated in a blog post that customers should take advantage of pp23andMes overall customer base amounts to over 14 million according to its websiteppA hacker claimed to have leaked and sold millions of users data from 23andMe The hacker also claimed to have data from celebrities such as Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk but this has not been verified by 23andMe ppIn the weeks that followed the bad actors in the breach were reportedly offering compilations of customer information for a price on a dark web forum according to multiple outlets ppFOX News and FOX Business contributed to this report This story was reported from Los Angeles ppAll the news you need to know every dayppBy clicking Sign Up I confirmthat I have read and agreeto the Privacy Policy and Terms of ServiceppppThis material may not be published broadcast rewritten or redistributed 2023 FOX Television Stationsp