Australian health insurer says data of all customers hacked

By ROD McGUIRK
Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s largest health insurer says a cybercriminal has hacked the personal data of all its 4 million customers, as the government introduced legislation that would increase penalties for companies that fail to protect clients’ private information. Medibank said in a statement Wednesday “significant amounts of health claims data” had also been accessed in the breach, which was reported to police a week ago when trade in the company’s shares was halted. The government has been planning urgent legislative reforms on cybersecurity regulation since a hacker stole the personal data of almost 10 million current and former customers of telecommunications company Optus last month. Legislation introduced to Parliament Wednesday would substantially increase penalties for privacy breaches.