Virgin Media has apologised after a data breach left the details of close to 900,000 customers unsecured for 10 months.
The cablenet says it has now shut down the database, but admitted that it had been accessed “on at least one occasion”.
In a statement, the Liberty Global company said: “We recently became aware that one of our marketing databases was incorrectly configured which allowed unauthorised access.
“We immediately solved the issue by shutting down access to this database, which contained some contact details of approximately 900,000 people, including fixed line customers representing approximately 15% of that customer base.
“The database did not include any passwords or financial details, such as credit card information or bank account numbers, but did contain limited contact information such as names, home and email addresses and phone numbers.
“Based upon our investigation, Virgin Media does believe that the database was accessed on at least one occasion but we do not know the extent of the access or if any information was actually used.
“We are now contacting those affected to inform them of what happened. We urge people to remain cautious before clicking on an unknown link or giving any details to an unverified or unknown party.”
The company has reported the issue to the Information Commissioner’s office.
One report suggests the database could have been left open since April 2019.