Ticketmaster impacted by massive alleged hacking breach

Ticketmaster, the world’s largest ticket seller, is reported to have been impacted by a massive data breach with a group of hackers saying they have stolen the personal details of 560 million of the company’s customers.

ShinyHunters, the group claiming responsibility, says the stolen data includes names, addresses, phone numbers and partial credit card details from Ticketmaster users worldwide is reportedly demanding a US$500,000 ransom payment to prevent the data from being sold to other parties.

The data breach is understood to include the details of 500,000 Ticketmaster users in Australia, where it was first reported.

While Ticketmaster, which processes 500 million tickets each year in more than 30 countries, has yet to confirm whether it has experienced a security breach, the Federal Government says it is working with the Live Nation subsidiary to address the issue.

In a statement to the USA’s CBS News, the Australia Home Affairs Department advised “the Australian Government is aware of a cyber incident impacting Ticketmaster.

"The National Office of Cyber Security is engaging with Ticketmaster to understand the incident."

ShinyHunters has been linked to a string of high-profile data breaches resulting in millions of dollars in losses to the companies involved.

In 2021 the group sold a genuine database of stolen information from 70 million customers of US telecoms firm AT&T.

In September last year, almost 200,000 Pizza Hut customers in Australia had their data breached.

This latest alleged hack coincides with the relaunch of BreachForums, a site on the dark web where other hackers buy and sell stolen material, and information to enable hacks to take place.

The USA’s Federal Bureau of Investigations cracked down on the domain in March 2023, arresting its administrator Conor Brian Fitzpatrick, but it has reappeared, according to technology media.

Users of the forums often inflate the scale of their hacking to attract attention from other hackers.

They are often where large stolen databases first appear but can also feature false allegations and claims.

Earlier this month, US regulators sued Live Nation, Ticketmaster's parent company, accusing the entertainment giant of using illegal tactics to maintain a monopoly over the live music industry.

The DoJ is pushing to break-up Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation Entertainment.