Insurance Major Star Health Sues Telegram Over Data Leak

Days after reports surfaced that a hacker was using Telegram chatbots to leak personal data and medical reports of Star Health users, the listed insurer has now reportedly sued both the messaging app as well as the hacker.

Quoting a public notice by the insurer in a newspaper, Reuters reported that a Tamil Nadu court, in an interim order, has directed Telegram to block any chatbots or websites in India that make Star Health data available online. 

The insurance company’s notice reportedly detailed the incident as “illegal hacking and unauthorised accessing of confidential, sensitive” information. 

This comes a week after a hacker, with the handle “xenZen” took responsibility for creating the Telegram chatbots and distributing Star Health data to the public. Last week, reports surfaced that the chatbot had stolen the data of more than 31 Mn customers of Star Health. 

The app’s chatbot was disclosing the private details of numerous individuals upon asking, as per a Reuters report. 

At the time, Star Health & Allied Insurance had expressed concerns over alleged unauthorised data access to local authorities. However, it had reportedly assured users that their sensitive data was secure and there was no widespread compromise.

However, when Reuters experimented with the bots, policy documents mentioning names, phone numbers, addresses, tax details, copies of ID cards, test results and medical diagnoses were reportedly available for download on the chatbot.

Meanwhile, the insurance major has filed a complaint with the cybercrime department of Tamil Nadu and federal cyber security agency CERT-In .

The development follows the arrest of Telegram CEO and founder Pavel Durov nearly a month ago in Paris. It was alleged that the company was complicit in distributing child sexual abuse images and facilitating money laundering and drug trafficking. 

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