2K Gamers should be on alert for any suspicious activity involving their accounts.
The popular video game publisher recently informed affected gamers that they are at risk of a cyberattack or becoming a victim of a cybercrime following the data breach that took place in late September.
The data breach occurred due to an unauthorized third party illegally accessing one of the publisher's vendors to its help desk platform, per 2K Games' tweet on the matter.
2K Games Data Breach Details
In the email 2K Games sent to the affected gamers, it mentioned that the unauthorized third party that accessed one of its vendors obtained and copied the personal data that was recorded about them when they contacted the company for support, per Video Games Chronicle.
These personal data include their email address, helpdesk ID number, Gamertag, and console details. Fortunately, 2K Games stated that there was no indication that the unauthorized third party acquired any of their financial information or passwords.
As such, the company does not believe the hackers were able to access or copy any of the affected 2K gamers' financial information.
Although the affected gamers' passwords were left untouched by the unauthorized third party, 2K Games recommends changing their passwords and restarting their devices.
Although restarting devices seems like a far-fetched idea, 2K games' investigative work revealed that doing so will provide additional protection from malware.
The company also recommends employing cybersecurity best practices, updating its antivirus, and using multi-factor authentication to shore up any gaps in its cybersecurity.
2K gamers are advised to follow these suggestions as the hacker has put the personal information they stole from the data breach on sale online, putting them at a higher risk of becoming a victim of cybercrime.
The hack seems to have targeted the affected gamers' personal information exclusively, and as such, affected and unaffected gamers.
How Did The Breach Happen?
Within these advisories, 2K Games kept mentioning the unauthorized email affected gamers sent during the data breach, which was the method the hacker used to acquire gamers' personal information.
Kotaku reports that the unauthorized third party impersonated a 2K Games support desk member to acquire the personal data it stole. To do so, the hacker launched a phishing scam by using the access they had to send unauthorized emails with a link that exposed 2K gamers to malware.
The 2K gamers that clicked on the link contained in the email the hacker sent are now the recipients of 2K's official email on what to do to protect themselves from cyberattacks.
Thankfully, those who did receive the malicious email but didn't click on the link are safe and are not expected to be a target of a cyberattack anytime soon.
At the time of the data breach, 2K Games advised gamers to reset their passwords, enable multi-factor authentication wherever possible, install and run a reputable antivirus program, and check their account settings for unauthorized changes.
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