Capital One data breach: Details of 100 million customers exposed in massive hack

Some 140,000 social security numbers obtained, says bank

The Virginia-based bank claims the information was likely not used for fraud (AP)

More than 100 million Capital One customers’ personal information has been exposed in a hack.

The bank said the data breach had affected about 100 million people who had applied for credit in the US and 6 million in Canada.

According to a report in the Washington Post, the FBI has arrested a woman in the Seattle area in connection with the hack.

Capital One said it believed it was unlikely the information was used for fraud, but that it would continue to investigate.

The hacker got information including credit scores and balances plus the social security numbers of about 140,000 customers.

Virginia-based Capital One said it would offer free credit monitoring services to those affected.

It discovered a vulnerability in its systems on 19 July and asked authorities for help.

Additional reporting by AP