It’s been a tense week for Tesla, the electric car company owned by billionaire Elon Musk, as details emerged about a huge employee data breach that took place on 10th May 2023.
Tesla filed a data breach notice with Maine’s attorney general, revealing that two previous employees had initiated the data leak of 75000 employees to a foreign media outlet. This leak includes complaints about the AutoPilot feature of Tesla over the past couple of years that may put its reputation at stake. Tesla has re-assured its employees with a formal letter.
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"While we have not identified evidence of misuse of the data in a manner that may cause harm to you, we are nonetheless providing you with this notice to ensure that you are aware of what happened and the measures we have taken," -Tesla’s letter to employees (Source: Engadget) |
The breach released more than 100 GB of data that included 23000 internal files with 2400 reports of self-acceleration issues, and 1500 cases of braking function problems. Lastly, there were 139 complaints about unintentional emergency braking and 383 incidences of phantom stops from false collision warnings.
The news is concerning for employees as this leak also included their personal information, such as names, phone numbers, social security numbers, and employment-related records.
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“The outlet has stated that it does not intend to publish the personal information, and in any event, is legally prohibited from using it inappropriately” -Tesla’s letter to employees (Source: Mezha. Media) |
Tesla has begun notifying current and former employees whose information was included in leaked confidential data.
Does the information contained in the leak change your view of Tesla? Join the conversation in our Yes We Trust community, a free discussion group for data privacy professionals and enthusiasts, on LinkedIn:
