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Security Operations · Foundational

Data Breach

A security incident resulting in confirmed unauthorized access to or disclosure of sensitive data.

Definition

Breaches often trigger legal and regulatory obligations, such as notification under GDPR (72 hours to the supervisory authority), US state breach laws, HIPAA and SEC rules for public companies. Determining whether a breach occurred requires forensic scoping.

Example

An attacker exfiltrating a customer database containing names and card numbers.

Exam tip

Not every incident is a breach; a breach requires data compromise.

Don't confuse it with

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