TalkTalk: 157,000 Customers Hit In Hack

TalkTalk has again downgraded the number of customers it believes were affected by the hacking of its website last month.

The telecoms firm said that the investigation it is carrying out - alongside that conducted by the police - meant it was now able to confirm that 156,959 people had their personal details accessed.

Of those, it said 15,656 bank account numbers and sort codes were seen but it insisted they were not able to be used for financial gain as key digits were hidden from view.

TalkTalk added that all those whose financial details were affected had now been contacted and advised not to hand over any bank account data that could compromise their accounts.

The company shut down its site following what it described as a "significant and sustained" attack on its website on 21 October, prompting initial fears that millions of customers may have had their bank details stolen.

The breach was the third in a series of cyber attacks that have affected TalkTalk customers.

In August, the firm revealed its mobile sales site was hit by a "sophisticated and co-ordinated cyber attack" in which personal data was accessed.

In February, customers were warned about scammers who managed to steal thousands of account numbers and names from TalkTalk's computers.

A 16-year-old boy from Norwich, another from London, a 15-year-old boy from County Antrim and a 20-year-old man from Staffordshire have been arrested and released on police bail in connection with the hack last month.

Shares (Berlin: DI6.BE - news) in TalkTalk rose almost 6% in early trading on Friday in response to the company's update but they remain down by more than a quarter since the incident first came to light.