Avis data breach reportedly affects nearly 300,000 customers

Avis data breach overview: 

• Who: Car rental company Avis disclosed it suffered a data breach that affected nearly 300,000 of its customers.
• Why: Avis attributed the data breach to an unauthorized third party gaining access to one of its business applications.
• Where: The data breach affected certain Avis customers nationwide. 

Car rental company Avis disclosed a data breach last week that it says affected nearly 300,000 of its customers. 

In data breach notification letters sent to consumers last week, Avis said it discovered on Aug. 5 that an unauthorized party had gained access to one of its business applications. 

An internal investigation determined the data breach occurred between Aug. 3 and Aug. 6, 2024, according to Avis, which said the investigation also found the unauthorized third party was able to obtain personal information. 

Avis said the investigation was done with assistance from cybersecurity experts and that it alerted the “relevant authorities.” The company said it has also taken steps to “deploy and implement” additional safeguards going forward.  

“Since the incident occurred, we have worked with cybersecurity experts to develop a plan to enhance security protections for the impacted business application,” Avis said in a sample data breach notification letter. 

Avis data breach exposed customer names, other sensitive data

The data breach affected more than 299,000 of Avis’ customers by exposing their names and other sensitive data, according to a filing with Maine’s attorney general. 

Avis told Maine’s attorney general that it notified affected customers Sept. 5. The company said it is offering those impacted with a complimentary 12-month membership with credit reporting agency Equifax. 

Affected consumers who would like to take advantage of the Equifax membership must enroll by Dec. 31, 2024, to remain eligible, according to Avis’ sample letter, which reminded consumers to “remain vigilant against threats of identity theft or fraud.” 

In a statement provided to tech and cybersecurity news website BleepingComputer, Avis said the data breach affected less than 1% of its customer base. 

In other recent data breach news, Dick’s Sporting Goods confirmed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in August that it suffered a data breach the sporting goods retailer says exposed confidential information. 

Dick’s attributed the data breach to an unauthorized third party gaining access to its systems, including portions containing “certain confidential information.” 

Are you affected by the Avis data breach? Let us know in the comments.

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