Syrian Electronic Army hacks database of collaborative global phone directory Truecaller

Stockholm-based True Software Scandinavia AB, which runs and owns the world's largest collaborative phone directory app Truecaller, has been hacked by Syrian Electronic Army (SEA) hackers. According to several media reports, Truecaller has around 20 million users worldwide which include more than 1 million users from India.

The news was first reported by Thehackernews.

The hacker group claims on their twitter account that they have hacked seven databases of 450GB size (which were uploaded by Truecaller users) from Truecaller data base saved on Truecaller's website, which is an outdated version of blogging software WordPress V3.5.1, Thehackernews reports. The hackers also claim to have data (codes) of over a million users with their Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Gmail accounts.

The twitter account of SEA states, "Sorry @Truecaller, we needed your database, thank you for it #SEA #SyrianElectronicArmy". The hacker also tweeted login credentials for the Truecaller database on Twitter and a screen shot of the database they accessed.

Paying heed to the same, Truecaller has published the following statement:

Truecaller experienced a cyber attack on our website that resulted in an unauthorised access to some data. We were able to shut it down moments after we discovered it. Our investigation into the matter indicates the attackers were able to access 'tokens', which were immediately reset. Metaphorically speaking, a 'token' is a unique lock for each user, but what the attackers did not acquire is the needed key, which has also been reset. Truecaller does not store passwords, credit card information, or any other sensitive information about our users. It is false information that attackers were able to access our user's Facebook, Twitter or any other social media passwords. We are still investigating the extent of unauthorised access of our database. We have outlined steps to help us deal with the situation. These steps include more complex security measures and various other tools we want to keep within the company.

Founded in 2009, Truecaller is a collaborative global phone directory. The app enables users to find people from all over the world by just entering their phone numbers. Truecaller is available on the web and as an app for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows phones.

Closer home, Innoz Technologies Pvt Ltd, a Bangalore-based startup which offers a mobile-based search service for basic mobile phones with no internet access, partnered with Truecaller to enable users to search for people by texting their phone numbers, using feature phones. The company has more than 120 million users across the globe.