Tesla Inc’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) cloud system was hijacked by hackers who used it to mine cryptocurrency, according to a report by CNBC, quoting researchers at cybersecurity firm RedLock.
The news site said hackers were able to infiltrate the electric car maker's administration console because it was not password protected, according to RedLock.
Cryptocurrency mining is a process whereby so-called miners solve complex mathematical problems to validate a transaction and add it to the underlying network.
The report said RedLock did not specify which cryptocurrency was mined in the cyber breach.
Other major firms, including British insurer Aviva PLC (LON:AV.) and Dutch SIM card-maker Gemalto, were affected by similar problems, RedLock added.
But the cybersecurity firm said the incident affecting Tesla's cloud system was more sophisticated, and used a number of different strategies to hide the hackers from being detected, CNBC said.
RedLock said it notified Tesla of the cyber exposure and that it was swiftly rectified.
Tesla said that it did not see any initial impact on customer data protection or the safety and security of its vehicles, the report added.