Nairobi News

Egypt-based ride hailing app SWVL was hacked in an attack that exposed the personal information of passengers including emails, names and phone numbers.

The app on Monday evening notified customers of the security breach and the security measures it deployed after attackers gained access on its computer network.

PASSWORDS

“On the 3rd of July, SWVL became aware of the unauthorised access to our system. The investigation into the breach is still underway, but at this stage, it is clear the data which was compromised is restricted to names, email addresses, and the phone number,” read a notice by SWVL.

“Rest assured that our investigation ensures that passwords and credit card information were not affected.”

SWVL advised customers to change their passwords on the app and on any other site where they had used the same.

DATA BREACHES

Hackers use the information from data breaches to access other linked accounts on other sites with similar password combinations gaining credit or debit card information or use the accounts to fleece contacts of the account holder.

This is not the first ride hailing app to become a victim of a data breach. Back in 2016, Uber was hacked and information belonging to 57 million riders and drivers accessed, including the names and driver’s license numbers.

Yahoo experienced multiple data breaches between 2013 and 2016 where three billion accounts were affected. A security researcher found an unprotected server with a database containing 419 million phone numbers belonging to Facebook users.

Zynga – creators of Words with friends and Draw something – were also breached last year with 218 million accounts affected.

This article was first published on the Business Daily