Adrian Johnson
TLDR
- Frontier Communications suffered a data breach, likely orchestrated by a cybercrime group.
- The breach was contained, and the company is working on restoring its business operations.
In a recent cyber attack, Frontier Communications discovered that an unauthorized third party had accessed parts of its IT system, leading to a “material” operational disruption. The company suspects that a cybercrime group was behind the breach, which resulted in the exposure of personally identifiable information. Despite the breach, Frontier believes it has contained the incident and has restored its core IT environment by April 18.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently broadened its definition of a data breach, acknowledging the increasing frequency and severity of such incidents in the telecommunications industry. The FCC’s update includes provisions for carriers to determine if customer harm is likely and adjust their notification processes accordingly.
This breach adds to a mounting list of telecom providers facing data security challenges, with T-Mobile and AT&T also experiencing significant breaches in the recent past. Frontier’s response to the breach, including engagement with cybersecurity experts and law enforcement, aligns with industry standards for handling such incidents.
As Frontier continues to investigate the breach and restore its operations, the incident serves as a reminder for organizations in the telecom sector to prioritize cybersecurity measures and response strategies to safeguard customer data and business operations.
