The case

The Principality of Liechtenstein has confirmed a significant cyberattack targeting its Register of Beneficial Owners, resulting in the unauthorized access and exfiltration of data associated with approximately 31,000 legal entities.

Source: International Press

The commentary

The affected register was established in 2021 to comply with the European Union’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Directives, which is designed to enhance transparency and support efforts to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing. The database contains information including the names, dates of birth and countries of residence of individuals identified as the beneficial owners of companies, foundations and other legal structures.

According to preliminary findings, the intrusion occurred during the night of 30 July and was carried out by an as-yet unidentified threat actor. In response, the Liechtenstein government has activated a crisis management team and initiated a comprehensive investigation.

Authorities are assessing the full scope of the breach, determining the extent of the compromised data and are investigating the attack vector while implementing appropriate measures in order to strengthen the security of the affected systems.