According to a report, a massive data breach has exposed the personal information of over 5 million Salvadorans – the vast majority of the country’s adult population. The hacker responsible claims this is the largest breach in El Salvador’s history.
The leaked data includes sensitive details like full names, birthdays, phone numbers, addresses, email addresses, and social security number-equivalent IDs. Disturbingly, the breach also includes millions of high-definition, uncensored headshot photos of Salvadorans.
The 144GB data trove has been available on the dark web since August, after the hacker’s ransom demand went unpaid. As punishment, the data was released for free, putting millions at risk of identity theft and other malicious activities.
This breach comes as El Salvador grapples with complex political and economic challenges under President Nayib Bukele’s government, including the adoption of bitcoin as legal tender. The scale and severity of this data leak underscore the urgent need for robust cybersecurity measures to protect citizen privacy in the country.
