Fidelity Investments, one of the world’s largest asset managers, has disclosed that over 77,000 customer records were compromised in a recent data breach.

The exposed data includes sensitive personal information such as Social Security numbers, driver’s licenses, and financial account details, raising serious concerns about identity theft and fraud. The breach occurred between August 17 and August 19, with Fidelity promptly cutting off the hacker’s access once the intrusion was detected on August 19​, 2024.

Fidelity has reassured customers that their investment accounts and funds were not directly affected by the breach. However, the compromised data still places affected individuals at risk. In response, Fidelity is offering impacted customers two years of free credit monitoring and identity restoration services​.

The company has already reported the breach to attorney generals in several states, where investigations into the incident are underway​.

The breach marks Fidelity’s second major cybersecurity issue this year. Earlier, a third-party service provider led to the exposure of personal information for about 30,000 additional customers.

With this latest breach affecting an even larger subset, concerns around cybersecurity measures in financial institutions have intensified. Experts suggest that the incident is a wake-up call for improved security across the sector​.