- 46-year-old man allegedly threatened to expose his identity records online
- More than a million Australians could be affected
EXCLUSIVE
Numerous local sports figures have potentially been caught up in the data breach that saw a Sydney man accused of blackmail, including one of the biggest names in Australian football.
It comes after the 46-year-old allegedly threatened to expose more than a million identity records, including names, phone numbers and home addresses, of patrons of Australian clubs and pubs.
He was arrested in Fairfield West, in Sydney’s west, on Thursday before being taken to Fairfield police station, where he was charged with demanding threats with intent to gain or cause loss.
WhatsNew2Day Australia can reveal that Socceroos boss Graham Arnold is among the potential online victims, as are Central Coast Mariners club legend Matt Simon, current Socceroos defender Kye Rowles and Western Sydney Wanderers star Jack Clisby.
Numerous local sports figures have been caught up in the data breach that saw a Sydney man accused of blackmail (file image)
It comes after the 46-year-old allegedly threatened to expose one million identity records, including names, phone numbers and home addresses, of patrons of Australian clubs and pubs (file image)
Former Newcastle Knights NRL halfback Mitchell Pearce, center Bradman Best and prop Daniel Saifiti were also caught in the gap.
Sports stars from both codes provided their details at venues including Breakers Country Club in Wamberal on the NSW Central Coast, East Maitland Bowling Club and Gwandalan Bowling Club.
The breach involved IT group Outabox, whose services for several hospitality venues left the private data of more than a million Australians at risk of becoming public.
Before his arrest, the man, who was granted bail to appear at Fairfield Local Court on June 12, threatened to reveal countless identity records.
The website, discovered this week, had published details of people who used their driving licenses and other personal details to register at 17 locations in New South Wales and the ACT.
It has prompted calls for better data management and changes to mandates requiring all 1,200 registered clubs in New South Wales to capture sponsor identity data.
Police said the breach was believed to have come from a third-party vendor.
Police also urge customers to wait until they are informed that they have been affected by the breach before changing any personal details.
WhatsNew2Day Australia can reveal Socceroos boss Graham Arnold is among potential online victims following the data breach.
Former Newcastle Knights NRL halfback Mitchell Pearce (pictured), center Bradman Best and prop Daniel Saifiti are also potentially at risk.
Privacy protection expert Philip Bos said the breach illustrated how Australians are often forced to hand over information to organizations that do not know how to handle sensitive data correctly or securely.
Some affected clubs had already broken contracts with the third-party provider, including in one case because it was sending data abroad.
Registered clubs are required by law to document and store the personal details of customers entering their premises in New South Wales.
If convicted, the alleged offender faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.
WhatsNew2Day Australia has contacted Graham Arnold for comment.