Cybersecurity: Data breach hits McDonald’s operations in South Korea, Taiwan

*The world’s largest burger chain company says cyberattackers took hold of consumer information in South Korea and Taiwan, as the company takes steps to notify regulators and consumers listed in the affected files

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

In the latest of global attacks by cybercriminals, McDonald’s Corporation, world’s largest burger chain, has said that a data breach in South Korea and Taiwan operations has exposed some consumer and employee information.

The company in a statement Friday, June 18 said the details of the breach in the two regions were the outcome of an investigation by external consultants following an unauthorised activity on the company’s network.

McDonald’s stated: “While we were able to close off access quickly after identification, our investigation has determined that a small number of files were accessed, some of which contained personal data.”

The company said it would take steps to notify regulators and consumers listed in the files, which did not contain customer payment information.

McDonald’s US employees were also affected by the attack. In message to US-based employees, the company said business contact information as well some information about restaurants was included in the breach, Wall Street Journal also reported.

According to the company, the exposed employee information was not personal or sensitive but advised employees to stay vigilant for phishing attacks.

The company disclosed that attackers took hold of customer information in South Korea and Taiwan. That includes e-mails, phone numbers and addresses for delivery.

ConsumerConnect had reported that recent breaches by cybercriminals on hospitals and global companies including the world’s biggest meat processors JBS and iconic Colonial Pipeline oil have disrupted operations for hours, leading to worries of supply shortages in the United States (US).

Some companies have had to pay a ransom to gain control of their operations and restart production.

Likewise, the Management Colonial Pipeline recently confirmed that the firm actually paid a sum of $11million to the cyber terror gang that hit its operations recently.

Meanwhile, McDonald’s has disclosed that it will use the findings from the investigation to identify and explore ways to improve its security measures going forward.