WASHINGTON — Ticketmaster has suffered an apparent data breach, putting more than half a billion users' personal info at risk, according to multiple news outlets.
A notorious hacker group called ShinyHunters claimed to have breached personal data from 560 million Ticketmaster users, according to HackRead, who first reported the cyberattack. The 1.3 terabytes of information, which include full names, addresses, payment details and more, has been put up for a "one-time" sale on a dark-web breach forum for $500,000, the outlet reported.
Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation Entertainment have not confirmed the alleged cyberattack and did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Despite no official confirmation from the company, Australian authorities from the Department of Home Affairs said they are aware of the incident and were working with Ticketmaster, the BBC reported.
ShinyHunters made waves in 2020 after a series of high-profile data breaches including Microsoft and AT&T Wireless, according to Wired.
Days after the alleged breach was reported on, Ticketmaster was struck with a class-action lawsuit over failure to protect consumers' personal data, Bloomberg Law reported on Thursday.
The security breach, if confirmed, would be the latest blow to the live-venue ticketing company.
Last week, the Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and Live Nation, accusing them of running an illegal monopoly over live events in the U.S. Additionally, the suit alleges that the company used long-term contracts to keep venues from choosing rival ticketers, blocking venues from using multiple ticket sellers and threatening venues that they could lose money and fans if they don’t choose Ticketmaster.
Live Nation and Ticketmaster which have long clashed with artists and fans, have always denied they act in a monopolistic manner.
If successful, it could lead to the potential breakup of Live Nation Entertainment, a company that resulted from Ticketmaster's 2010 merger with concert promoter Live Nation.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
