BreachPublished 29 Oct 2026

Hackers Steal 2.6 Million Records From Sony’s Japanese ISP So-net

Source SecurityWeek

Description

In October 2026, hackers breached Sony Network Communications' Japanese ISP So-net, stealing approximately 2.6 million customer records. The compromised data includes personal information such as names, dates of birth, gender, phone numbers, email addresses, user IDs, and internet connection IDs. Additionally, 54,401 email account passwords from multiple mail services and 16 bank account records were exposed. The breach was detected four days after the intrusion, prompting So-net to take the affected server offline and reset passwords for impacted email accounts. The cause of the unauthorized access remains under investigation, and the incident has been reported to Japan's Personal Information Protection Commission.

Impact

The breach exposed sensitive personal information of millions of customers, including names, birth dates, contact details, and user IDs, which could facilitate identity theft or targeted phishing attacks. The compromise of over 54,000 email passwords allowed potential unauthorized access to email accounts, risking further data exposure or misuse. Additionally, 16 bank account records were leaked, though no PINs or credit card data were involved, limiting direct financial fraud risk. The incident affects both current and former subscribers, increasing the scope of potential impact.

Defensive guidance

So-net has taken the affected server offline and reset passwords for all impacted email accounts, requiring users to create new passwords before service access is restored. Customers should follow password reset instructions and monitor their accounts for suspicious activity. The company has reported the incident to Japan's Personal Information Protection Commission and continues to assess the breach.

Summary

On October 19, 2026, attackers gained unauthorized access to So-net's member database, compromising nearly 2.6 million records belonging to So-net and Plala subscribers. The stolen data comprises personal identifiers and contact details, along with 54,401 email passwords from four additional mail services and 16 bank account records without PINs. The breach was discovered on October 23, leading to immediate containment actions including server shutdown and password resets. So-net has not disclosed the attack vector and continues investigating. Credit card data and other services such as NURO were not affected. The incident has been formally reported to relevant Japanese authorities.

References

securityweek.com/hackers-steal-2-6-million-records-from-sonys-japanese-isp-so-net/ (opens in a new tab)

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AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 29 Oct 2026, 11:17 UTC

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