Consumer credit reporting agency Equifax fell victim to a cybersecurity incident which potentially impacts 143 million US consumers, as well as UK users.

The firm stated that criminals exploited a US website application vulnerability to gain access to certain files. Based on the company's investigation, the unauthorised access occurred from mid-May through July 2017.

The company says it has found no evidence of unauthorised activity on its core consumer or commercial credit reporting databases. The information accessed primarily includes names, social security numbers, birth dates, addresses and, in some instances, driver's license numbers.

In addition, credit card numbers for approximately 209,000 US consumers, and certain dispute documents with personal identifying information for approximately 182,000 US consumers, were accessed.

As part of its investigation of this application vulnerability, Equifax also identified unauthorised access to limited personal information for certain UK and Canadian residents.

However, the company has found no evidence that personal information of consumers in any other country has been impacted.

Equifax chairman and CEO, Richard Smith, said: “This is clearly a disappointing event for our company, and one that strikes at the heart of who we are and what we do. I apologise to consumers and our business customers for the concern and frustration this causes.

“We pride ourselves on being a leader in managing and protecting data, and we are conducting a thorough review of our overall security operations. We also are focused on consumer protection and have developed a comprehensive portfolio of services to support all US consumers, regardless of whether they were impacted by this incident.”

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