Two IT Giants, One Cyber Alert: TCS And HCLTech Deny System Breaches

HCLTech has said it found no evidence of a breach of its systems or any impact on client engagements after a hacker group claimed that employee data may have been exposed.

In an exchange filing, the IT services major said its initial investigation found that the data in question “may be limited and dated to a few years back.” The company said it is conducting a further investigation into the claims.

“There is no evidence of breach to the Company’s systems or engagement with any of the Company’s clients,” HCLTech said.

The company’s clarification comes hours after larger rival Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) made a similar disclosure about possible exposure of employee information.

What HCLTech Has Said

HCLTech said the claims were made by a hacker group and had appeared in media alerts. The company did not confirm that the alleged employee data had been obtained through a breach of its systems.

The company said its initial review suggests that the data may be limited and several years old. It did not provide details on the type or volume of information allegedly involved.

HCLTech added that its investigation is still underway and that “any material findings in this regard will be reported.” This means the company has not closed its probe, despite finding no evidence of a systems breach so far.TCS

TCS Also Faces Similar Claim

The development comes shortly after TCS informed stock exchanges about threat-intelligence alerts alleging possible exposure of certain employee information.

TCS said the information referenced appeared to be more than four years old and limited to basic employee information. It also said there was “no credible evidence of a breach” of its systems or customer environments.

TCS further said there was no indication that customer data, customer systems or operational systems had been affected. The company said safeguards against the alleged attack techniques had been in place for more than two years.

The two cases have put employee-data exposure claims involving two of India’s largest IT services companies under the spotlight. However, neither HCLTech nor TCS has confirmed a breach of its systems or client environments.

HCLTech said cybersecurity remains a top priority and that it remains committed to protecting information entrusted to the company.