Star Health Sues Telegram, Cloudflare Over Data Leak

Top Indian insurer Star Health has filed a lawsuit against Telegram, a self-styled hacker, and Cloudflare for leaking personal and medical data of policyholders. The Madras High Court has issued a temporary injunction to block chatbots or websites hosting the data. The case will be heard on Oct. 25.

Top Indian insurer Star Health has initiated legal action against Telegram and a self-styled hacker after reports of personal and medical data leaks surfaced. The insurer claims the hacker used chatbots on Telegram to disclose sensitive information.

A court in Tamil Nadu has granted a temporary injunction ordering Telegram and the hacker to block any chatbots or websites making the data available online. Star Health has also sued U.S.-listed software firm Cloudflare, alleging that the leaked data was hosted using its services.

Star Health publicly disclosed details of the lawsuit in an advertisement in The Hindu on Thursday. The court has issued notices to Telegram and Cloudflare, with the next hearing scheduled for Oct. 25.

According to the ad, Star Health seeks to prevent Telegram and Cloudflare from using its trade name or making any data available online. This move follows a Reuters report that a hacker named xenZen had leaked customer data on Telegram. Despite initial assessments showing no widespread compromise, Reuters found over 1,500 leaked files featuring personal details. Star has also sued xenZen, who expressed willingness to join the hearings online.

(With inputs from agencies.)