SBI Files FIR as 3.75 Lakh Records Surface on Dark Web After Data Breach

The First Information Report (FIR) was registered at the CBD-Belapur police station on November 12, on a complaint from SBI official Bhavesh Nikam. It states that unidentified persons operating under the name “Siriusim” gained unauthorised access to the bank’s central server between October 10 and October 15. The stolen files were spotted on the dark web in October.

According to the complaint, the haul included 32 CSV files holding 375,000 records, several JSON files and 2,722 PDF documents. The data is believed to contain customers’ personally identifiable information, such as phone numbers and residential addresses, as well as paperwork tied to loan applications and account-opening requests. Senior Inspector Arun Pawar of the CBD-Belapur police confirmed that the probe was under way.

Bank officials told investigators they had moved to have the data taken down from the dark web and that there was no evidence so far of its misuse. Police have booked the case under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections on criminal conspiracy and theft, along with provisions of the Information Technology Act. Prashant Mali, a lawyer specialising in cybersecurity and privacy, cautioned that removing the data from the dark web did not mean the danger had passed for those affected.

He said the information could already have been circulated or sold, and urged SBI customers to be extra watchful against phishing attempts and other forms of cyber fraud.