Comcast, the US telecommunications company, and Truist Bank, a US financial services company, are informing their customers about a data breach involving their partner Financial Business and Consumer Solutions (FBCS), a debt collection agency. The breach, which took place between February 14 and February 26, 2024, exposed sensitive customer data, including names, Social Security numbers, and account details.

In April, FBCS reported a security breach affecting 1.9 million individuals. However, further investigation revealed that the number of impacted people was 4.2 million. The breach compromised personal information such as Social Security numbers, account information, and ID card numbers. FBCS partners with various companies, including Comcast and Truist Bank, for debt collection services.

Comcast initially believed its customer data was safe, as FBCS assured the company in March 2024 that no customer data had been compromised. However, FBCS later informed Comcast on July 17 that over 273,000 Comcast customers were indeed affected. Exposed data included customer names, addresses, birth dates, and Social Security numbers. In response, Comcast has offered 12 months of free identity theft protection services to impacted individuals.

Truist Bank, one of the largest banks in the United States, was also impacted by the breach. In September 2024, Truist began notifying customers that their data had been compromised. The exposed information varies by customer but typically includes the aforementioned personal data. While the total number of affected Truist customers remains undisclosed, given Truist’s extensive operations across 15 states, the breach could potentially affect a significant number of people.

FBCS’s financial troubles, likely worsened by the data breach, have led to Comcast and Truist handling the remediation and notification processes themselves. This breach is just one of the latest in a string of data compromises affecting large organizations, with Truist Bank previously confirming a separate breach in October 2023.