i never receive any emails. Oh my oh my, just ported out of MyRepublic last week. How does the email looked like?
Dear Jurong640,
I regret to inform you that we have discovered an unauthorised access of your personal data that you have entrusted to us.
I would like to personally apologise for this incident. Like you, we are disappointed with what has happened and we have worked closely with our IT teams as well as external experts to secure and contain the incident.
What happened?
On 29 August 2021, we discovered that an unknown external party had obtained unauthorised access to a third-party data storage platform used by MyRepublic to store identity verification documents relating to the application for mobile services. Some of that data was downloaded without permission.
The unauthorised access to the data storage facility has since been secured, and the incident has been contained. We have also reported this incident to the Personal Data Protection Commission and the Infocomm Media Development Authority.
What personal data was accessed?
Based on our investigation, the unauthorised access affects only mobile subscribers based in Singapore.The affected data storage platform contained the following identity verification documents related to customer applications for mobile services:
For affected Singapore citizens, permanent residents and employment and dependent pass holders — scanned copies of both sides of NRICs - this includes name, address, date of birth, gender, race, place of birth, full NRIC number, photograph, thumbprint, date of card issue and (for employment passes and dependant passes) employer and nationality;
For affected foreigners — proof of residential address documents (e.g. scanned copies of a utility bill, tenancy agreement or insurance policy), including name and address; and
For affected customers porting an existing mobile service — name and mobile number.
There is no indication that other personal data, such as account or payment information, was affected. No MyRepublic systems were compromised and there was no operational impact on MyRepublic’s services.
What are the risks and what can I do to protect myself?
While we currently have no evidence of misuse of the personal data involved in this incident, we are taking steps to notify you of the possibilities. It is important that you remain vigilant for any potential signs of identity fraud. We recommend that you:
Keep an eye on your financial and other accounts for suspicious activity, such as unauthorised transactions and changes to account details, and notify your bank as soon as possible if you notice any such activity;
Check with Singapore Post that your mail has not been redirected if you find you are not receiving mail, and secure your letterbox (fraudsters sometimes redirect or steal mail to avoid detection);
Contact us here if you receive an unsolicited number port request (fraudsters sometimes attempt to port mobile numbers to obtain access to SMS authentication messages); and
Notify the relevant seller or service provider as soon as possible if you receive goods or services that you did not order, or notifications about goods or services that you did not order.
It is also possible that someone could contact you in an attempt to trick you into providing more personal data or access credentials - this is called “social engineering”. To protect yourself against social engineering, you should:
Be wary of anyone contacting you who requests personal data or access credentials from you, even if they appear to know other details about you;
Not respond to email or SMS messages asking for personal data (few legitimate organisations will ask for personal information by email or SMS); and
Be careful of unsolicited telephone calls which purport to be from a government authority or business (if you think the call is genuine, hang up and call the authority or business back on their public telephone number).
What is MyRepublic doing to help?
I understand you will have questions and concerns, and MyRepublic will stand by your side every step of the way to support you as we navigate this incident. For your peace of mind, we will be providing you with an offer to take up a complimentary credit monitoring service through Credit Bureau Singapore (CBS).
Under this service, CBS will monitor your credit report and alert you of any suspicious activity. Customers who wish to take advantage of this offer may contact MyRepublic here.
You may also visit our official announcement page and FAQ page for more details.
My team and I are in the process of thoroughly reviewing what went wrong and putting in place safeguards to ensure it does not happen again. We thank you for your patience and support as we work through this together, and I promise you we will make the necessary improvements to earn back your trust.
If you have any further questions, please reach out to us here.
Regards,
Malcolm Rodrigues
CEO
MyRepublic