Hackers Breach Liechtenstein’s Registry of Beneficial Owners, Exfiltrating Data on 31,000 Entities
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Key Takeaways
- Register breach: Unknown hackers stole data on roughly 31,000 legal entities from Liechtenstein's register of beneficial owners.
- Attack window: The unauthorized access occurred during the night of July 29 before authorities detected irregularities.
- No bank data: Simon Tribelhorn of the Liechtenstein Bankers Association confirmed no banks or customer data were affected.
Liechtenstein's government has confirmed that unknown perpetrators illegally accessed and copied data from the principality's register of beneficial owners, compromising information on approximately 31,000 companies, foundations, and trusts. It's a striking target for a country of just 40,000 people – and one whose entire financial identity rests on discretion.
Liechtenstein, one of the world's smallest and wealthiest countries, is home to thousands of low-tax trusts, making the compromised dataset significant in scope.
Attackers Breach the Beneficial Owners Register
According to the government, intruders gained unauthorized access to the register, officially known as the Verzeichnis wirtschaftlich berechtigter Personen, or VwbP, during the night of July 29–30, and copied data before authorities detected irregularities on Thursday and took the affected system offline.
According to officials, the information stolen in the Liechtenstein data breach includes:
- names,
- dates of birth,
- nationality, and
- country of residence.
The register was created under a 2021 act as part of the principality's anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF) framework, implementing EU AML directives and designed to increase transparency around who ultimately controls corporate structures.
Banking Sector Unaffected
Simon Tribelhorn, director of the Liechtenstein Bankers Association, told Reuters that no banks or customer data have been affected. "It is an unfortunate incident and should not be taken lightly," Tribelhorn said.
The government added there is currently no indication the hacked data has been altered or deleted, suggesting the incident centered on exfiltration rather than manipulation.
Government Activates Crisis Task Force
In response, Liechtenstein's government established a crisis task force led by Prime Minister Brigitte Haas and Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Emanuel Schädler, alongside Martin Alge, head of the Office of Justice.
Authorities held an emergency press conference in Vaduz on Sunday and are working to notify affected individuals as the investigation continues. So far, no suspect has been named, and officials haven't disclosed how the intruders gained access.
In mid-July, Kenya's Presidential website was hit by a cyber incident, with the government saying no data was stolen. In February, the French government disclosed a major national bank account registry breach.
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