Fintech lender Figure Technology Solutions has disclosed a data breach after hackers exposed personal information from nearly one million accounts. Details from 967,200 accounts, including names, email addresses, phone numbers, home addresses, and dates of birth, were compromised.
Figure Technology Solutions, founded in 2018, operates a blockchain-based lending platform built on the Provenance blockchain. The company says it has facilitated more than $22 billion in home equity transactions through partnerships with banks, credit unions, and fintech firms. Despite blockchain security claims, attackers reportedly gained access by manipulating a staff member rather than breaking the underlying technology.
‘We recently identified that an employee was socially engineered, and that allowed an actor to download a limited number of files through their account,’ a company spokesperson said. ‘We acted quickly to block the activity and retained a forensic firm to investigate what files were affected. We understand the importance of these matters and are communicating with partners and those impacted as appropriate.’
Security researchers say the data breach follows a pattern used by groups such as ShinyHunters, who impersonate IT support staff and pressure employees into revealing login credentials through convincing phishing portals.
Once access to corporate single sign-on systems, which allow users to log in to multiple internal applications with a single set of credentials, is obtained, attackers can move across multiple internal platforms, often including services linked to major providers such as Microsoft and Google.
Experts warn that the data breach highlights a wider cybersecurity problem: even advanced technologies such as blockchain cannot prevent attacks that target human behaviour. Criminals can use exposed personal information to launch convincing phishing campaigns or financial scams, reinforcing the need for stronger employee training and security awareness.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech, and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
