Australia’s Medibank slapped with class action over cyber incident

(Reuters) – Australian health insurer Medibank Private Ltd said on Tuesday a class action suit had been filed against it over last year’s cybercrime incident that compromised personal information of 10 million current and former customers.

The proceedings were filed in an Australian court by law firm Baker & McKenzie, representing current and former Medibank customers affected by the incident. The class action alleges breach of contract and contraventions of Australian consumer law.

Medibank said it would defend its position.

In October, the insurer said its systems had been accessed by a hacker, and personal data of current and former customers had been accessed. Personal information, including medical records, was later released onto a dark web forum.

Omni Bridgeway, a firm engaged in arbitration financing, said it was funding the suit on a “no win, no pay” basis, and at no cost to those filing the class action.

Baker & McKenzie did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

(Reporting by Harshita Swaminathan; Editing by Savio D’Souza and Subhranshu Sahu)