Korea’s Hanon Systems notifies employees of data breach that compromised SSNs, contact info

South Korea’s Hanon Systems over the weekend confirmed it notified 1,205 Americans of a July 2024 data breach that compromised names, Social Security numbers, and contact information.

Ransomware group Hunters International claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it stole more than 1.6 million files, or 2.3 TB of data.

Hanon’s notice to victims states, “On July 21, 2024, HS was subject to a ransomware event whereby certain information was accessed by a third party bad actor and held under the threat of a ransom demand. We confirmed that some of your personal information was affected by the incident.”

Hanon has not verified Hunters’ claim. We do not yet know how many people outside of the US were impacted, how much money  Hunters demanded in ransom, whether Hanon paid it, or how attackers breached Hanon’s systems. The notice specifically addresses Hanon Systems employees, so client and customer data might not have been breached. Comparitech contacted Hanon for comment and will update this article if it responds.

Hanon is offering victims free credit monitoring via Equifax. Hanon employees should be on the lookout for targeted phishing messages.

Who is Hunters International?

Hunters International first appeared in October 2023, and is rumored to be a spin-off of an earlier group called Hive. Hunters often extorts victims twice in one attack: it seeks one ransom for decrypting systems and another for deleting stolen data.

Comparitech researchers logged 37 confirmed ransomware attacks claimed by Hunters International in total, affecting about 1.4 million records. The group targeted four other manufacturing companies this year: Formosa Plastics, Noritsu America, Harper Industries, and Clark Material Handling.

We tracked another 126 unconfirmed attacks claimed by Hunters, but that have not been reported by victims.

Ransomware attacks on manufacturers

Aside from data theft, ransomware attacks on manufacturers can disrupt supply lines by encrypting computer systems used for everything from factory operation to billing and payroll.

We recorded 69 confirmed ransomware attacks on manufacturers around the world so far in 2024, affecting 179,089 records. 2024 is on track to have fewer attacks than 2023, which saw 146 attacks affect 591,666 records.

We logged another 510 unconfirmed ransomware attacks on manufacturers in 2024, 30 of which were claimed by Hunters International.

About Hanon Systems

Hanon Systems makes auto parts and is the world’s largest supplier of auto thermal management systems. Founded in Daejon, South Korea in 1986, the company now operates 50 manufacturing sites and employs more than 20,000 people in 21 countries, according to its LinkedIn profile.