Hacker Claims 46,000 TSMC Employee Records for Sale, Demands 3 Bitcoin

At a glance

Personal data of TSMC employees, the world's largest contract chipmaker, has appeared for sale on the dark web. The hacker demands three bitcoin and threatens to publish everything if no buyer appears within a week. TSMC confirmed a leak but says its own systems show no sign of a breach.

Key points

1. 1

   The hacker says they are selling data on 46,000 employees, about 6.9GB in total.

2. 2

   A sample reportedly includes names, birth dates, ID numbers, addresses, phone numbers, and bank details.

3. 3

   TSMC says the data matches what was stored at an outside cloud service provider and is investigating the cause.

4. 4

   It is not yet confirmed whether all 46,000 claimed records are genuine.

Why it matters

If employee personal details from a chipmaker leak outside, they can be used for identity theft and financial fraud.