Hacker steals data of 31 thousand legal entities in Liechtenstein

Illustration. (Pexels)

JAKARTA - Hackers or hackers illegally accessed the data of around 31,000 legal entities in Liechtenstein. The cyber attack targeted the list of beneficial owners used to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.

Anadolu Agency, quoted Tuesday, August 4, reported that the Liechtenstein government announced the incident on Sunday. The government immediately formed a crisis team after the attack was detected on the Register of Beneficial Owners or VwbP.

"The Register of Beneficial Owners or VwbP is a target of cyber attacks. Copies of data for about 31,000 legal entities were illegally accessed. The government has formed a crisis team," the government said in a written statement.

The government said the perpetrator was not known. The unauthorized digital access to the list occurred on July 30.

Authorities then found irregularities in the system. The government took security measures and shut down the affected system.

"On July 31, 2026, the government was informed that a potentially successful attack against VwbP had occurred. In the afternoon of August 1, the first confirmed results of the initial investigation were presented to the government," the government said.

Even though the data copy was accessed illegally, the government confirmed that there was no sign that data in the system was changed or deleted.

The list of beneficial owners contains information about the parties who are the actual owners or ultimate controllers of a legal entity. This data includes companies, foundations, and trusts.

The Liechtenstein government said the VwbP was managed to help prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.