Swedish-founded security company Verisure faces a major hacking incident. Police confirm they have launched an extortion and data breach investigation.
The company operates in 17 countries worldwide and serves 500,000 customers in Sweden alone. Eastern Police Region spokesperson Olle Älveroth stated authorities are investigating what happened.
"We have initiated a preliminary investigation concerning extortion and serious data intrusion," Älveroth said. "We are now examining what may have occurred, and as I understand it, we don't have a clear picture of the situation at present."
Prosecutor Karin Evlinger received the case earlier today but declined to comment on the severity assessment. Police cannot confirm whether personal data has been compromised and refer such questions to the company.
Verisure Sweden's communications chief Tariq Belquiad wrote in an email that they recently detected "unauthorized access by a third party concerning data related to Alert Alarm stored with an external billing partner." The company is now working to investigate the incident and promises to inform Alert Alarm customers when they have more information.
This attack highlights the vulnerability of even security-focused companies to digital threats. The incident raises serious questions about data protection practices when customer information is handled by third-party vendors.