JAPAN COMPUTERS CONTAINING CUSTOMER INFORMATION STOLEN FROM BUSINESSMainichi Interactive - Top NewsComputers containing customers' information stolen from car firm


HIKONE, Shiga -- Three computers containing personal information on nearly 1,700 customers have been stolen from a car sales company here, company officials said Friday.

The company, Shiga Toyota Motor that sells Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles in Shiga Prefecture, has apologized to the customers whose information is carried in the stolen computers. However, company officials said there is no sign that the information has been illegally used.

Sometime between midnight and 8 a.m. on Dec. 23 last year, a thief broke the window of a Shiga Toyota temporary office and sneaked into the structure, police said. The thief stole personal computers from the office.

The computers contained personal information on 1,691 customers, including their addresses, names, birth dates and phone numbers. They also carry the credit card numbers of some of the customers.

Company officials said the information can not be accessed unless passwords are input into the computers. (Mainichi Shimbun, Japan, Feb. 4, 2005)