Insurer Aflac probes potential data breach after cyberattack on US network

Aflac on Friday disclosed a cybersecurity incident in which personal information of its customers may have been compromised, making it the latest insurance provider to be targeted.

The health and life insurance firm said the attack on its US network, which was identified on June 12, was caused by a "sophisticated cybercrime group", but did not specify a name.

It said it was unable to determine the total number of affected individuals until a review, which is in its early stages, is completed.

The company said it was able to stop the intrusion within hours and has reached out to third-party cybersecurity experts to investigate into the incident.

The company said the potentially impacted files contain personal information of its customers, such as social security numbers and health-related details.

Aflac offers accident and pet insurance plans in the US and Japan. It manages personal, medical and financial data of more than 50 million policyholders.

Health insurers have been facing increased cybersecurity risks recently with UnitedHealth's breach being the most notable example impacting 100 million people last year.

UnitedHealth's Change unit was breached by a hacking group called ALPHV, also known as "BlackCat" who are estimated to have stolen a third of Americans' data in one of the worst hacks to hit the US healthcare sector.

Shares of Aflac fell 1.3% in premarket trading.