Coca Cola is investigating reports of data breach after claim Stormous ransomware group stole data

A group of Russian-linked hackers claimed to have hacked Coca-Cola and put rucks of data up for sale.

Stormous said it stole 161 gigabytes of financial data, passwords and accounts before putting the information on the market for $640,000 or 16 million Bitcoin.

The team revealed on Monday it had infiltrated the drinks company and got out ‘without their knowledge’. Coca-Cola said it has launched an urgent investigation and already contacted the police.

The Stormous hacking group posted online that it has stolen 161 gigabytes of data from Coca-Cola, and is now selling the information

The hack reportedly comes after the group posted a poll asking which company it should target, and Coca-Cola received the most votes

‘You will win and we will win,’ read an apparent message from the group, which was later posted on Twitter.

‘You will also contact us! We will explain more,’ the message, in apparently broken English, continues. ‘Good deal, we’ll give you the right to pay the amount you want depending on the amount of data you want.’

It said the group downloaded 161 gigabytes from the company, which it would sell for more than $640,000 or more than 16 million in Bitcoin.

Among the stolen files, according to CISO Advisor, are financial data, passwords and commercial accounts.

The group had previously made waves for expressing its support of Russian forces in its invasion of Ukraine. 

It also previously posted a poll on the Telegram messaging service asking which company it should go after. After 103 votes were cast, Security Affairs reports, Coca-Cola received 72 percent.

Coca-Cola has previously pulled its operations from Russia during the invasion of Ukraine

On Tuesday, its shares were down almost half a percentage point following a first quarter report that concluded the decision may reduce net revenue and operating profit for the year by 1 to 2 percent

Stormous is a relative newcomer in the hacking world but gained attention at the beginning of the year.

They said they had stolen 200 gigabytes of data from Epic Games and later made headlines when it announced its support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It remains unclear where the group is based, with The Record reporting most of its messages are in Arabic.

It wrote in English at the beginning of March: ‘The Stromous team has officially announced its support for the Russian governments.

‘And if any party in different parts of the world decides to organize a cyber attack or cyberattacks against Russia, we will be in the right direction, will make all our efforts to abandon the supplication of the West, especially the infrastructure.

‘Perhaps the hacking operation that our team carried out for the government of Ukraine and a Ukrainian airline was just a simple operation, but what is coming will be bigger,’ the group warned.

It also issued a warning against ‘western unions’ and US-based companies, after it said it was ‘attacked’ by US companies that shut down their site. 

Just a few days after the group’s announcement, on March 8, Coca-Cola announced it was suspending its operations in Russia in opposition to its invasion.

The company said: ‘Our hearts are with the people who are enduring unconscionable effects from these tragic events in Ukraine.’

It added: ‘We will continue to monitor and assess the situation as circumstances evolve.’

Coca-Cola executives estimate the decision will tentatively reduce the corporations net revenue and operating profit for the year by 1 to 2 percent.

Its net profit has already decreased by 23.5 percent, compared to the same period last year, according to its first quarter report, issued on Monday.

But its quarterly revenue rose by 5 percent to $9.02 billion from $8.6 billion. The firm is trading at $65.69, down nearly half a percentage point from the day before.

But it is continuing to double down on its support for Ukraine, noting in its filing it will provide $15billion in aid to the country.

It wrote: ‘This funding will support further relief efforts by the Red Cross and other organizations operating in Ukraine and neighboring countries, heling millions of displaced people.’

A spokesman for Coca-Cola said they are investigating the claims of stolen data, and have already contacted law enforcement.

‘We are aware of this matter and are investigating to determine the validity of the claim,’ communications vice president Scott Leith told The Record.