Checkout.com Suffers Data Breach as ShinyHunters Attack Cloud Storage

Checkout[.]com has disclosed a data breach driven by the ShinyHunters group, with attackers accessing old data stored in a third‑party cloud system. According to Checkout[.]com’s investigation, the cybercriminals obtained documents by exploiting a legacy cloud storage system that had not been properly decommissioned and was last used in 2020.

The storage was intended for internal records and merchant onboarding information, and about 25% of current merchants could be affected, though Checkout[.]com’s central payment system was never at risk and no merchant funds or card numbers were accessed. The breach occurred last week after ShinyHunters contacted the company with a ransom demand.

Mariano Albera, Chief Technology Officer at Checkout[.]com, said the company takes responsibility for not shutting down the old system correctly and apologised for the worry caused, noting that they are notifying anyone impacted and cooperating with law enforcement and regulators.

The firm has refused to pay the ransom and instead plans to donate the equivalent amount to cybersecurity research at Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Oxford’s Cyber Security Center, emphasising transparency and trust in the payments industry.