A third-party service provider we use for identity verification recently experienced a security incident. We know this isn't a nice thing to read, so here's what we know and what we're doing about it. Your account, investments and ability to trade are not affected.
NOTE: This page will be updated as our investigation and the provider's continue. If something here is later confirmed to have changed, the updated version is correct, not this one.
On this page:
What Happened
The provider, which we use for part of our client identification and verification process, confirmed to us on the evening of 10 September 2026 that an unauthorised third party had gained access to its environment. We disabled our integration with the provider the next day, 11 September 2026, as an immediate containment step.
Related: Were EasyEquities' own systems breached? · What client data may have been affected?
No. This affects clients whose information passed through this specific provider, not everyone on the platform. We've already contacted the clients this concerns directly. It's natural to feel uneasy even if you weren't one of them, the steps below, like accelerating 2FA and bringing in independent cybersecurity specialists, apply across the whole platform, not just to affected accounts. If you'd still like to double check, please raise a support ticket (select Access your Account → I'm worried about fraud on my account).
Related: Does this change how safe EasyEquities is as a whole? · Suspect Fraud?
No. We've confirmed this is limited to the provider's own systems. We've found no evidence that EasyEquities' or Purple Group's own systems were breached or accessed. A 30-day retrospective threat hunt across our logs, run with our security monitoring partner, found no successful or active threat activity within that review window; the only activity identified was reconnaissance attempts that our own perimeter controls blocked at the time. We continue to monitor for any related activity.
Related: What has EasyEquities done in response? · Are my investments and my ability to trade still safe?
Based on our assessment so far: full name, identity number, date of birth, gender, nationality, country of residence and account number. We'll update this list if our or the provider's investigation identifies any other categories.
Related: What should I do to protect myself? · Suspect Fraud?
Yes. Your account, your investments and your ability to trade remain secure. This incident did not involve EasyEquities' own platform or systems.
Related: Were EasyEquities' own systems breached? · Does this change how safe EasyEquities is as a whole?
What We're Doing, And What You Should Do
We've disabled our integration with the provider, engaged independent cybersecurity specialists, and rotated the keys and API tokens tied to that integration. We've commissioned dark web monitoring and continue tracking threat intelligence for any exposure of Purple Group data, credentials or domains, specifically in relation to this incident.
As a precaution we've also reissued phishing and vendor-impersonation awareness guidance to our own staff, reported the matter to the Information Regulator under POPIA, and we're accelerating our 2FA rollout across the platform.
Related: What is Two-Factor Authentication and How Do I Activate It? (2FA) · Does this change how safe EasyEquities is as a whole?
This incident sits with a third-party provider we use for part of identity verification, not with EasyEquities' own trading, custody or account systems. The response to it applies across the whole platform, whether or not your information passed through that provider: disabling that integration, bringing in independent cybersecurity specialists, and accelerating 2FA.
Related: What has EasyEquities done in response? · Tips and tricks to keep your EasyEquities account secure
Stay alert to unexpected calls, SMSes or emails referencing this incident, including anyone contacting you claiming to represent EasyEquities. Never share your password, OTP or PIN with anyone, and only act on requests that come through official EasyEquities channels. If anyone contacts you directly claiming to hold your information as part of this incident, don't engage, and let us know immediately.
We'd also recommend enabling 2FA if you haven't already, and logging in at least once a week to confirm everything on your account still looks right. If you'd like an extra layer of protection, you can register with a fraud prevention service, which flags your details to its member organisations so they take extra care verifying anyone claiming to be you.
Related: What client data may have been affected? · What is Two-Factor Authentication and How Do I Activate It? (2FA) · Suspect Fraud?
Raise a support ticket at support.easyequities.co.za/support/tickets/new and select Access your Account → I'm worried about fraud on my account, or email fraud@easyequities.co.za directly. We're directing incident-related questions there so they reach the right team.
Related: What should I do to protect myself? · Suspect Fraud?
What This FAQ Doesn't Cover
This page covers general questions about this incident. If you want to know whether your own information was affected, or you've noticed anything unusual on your account, raise a support ticket here and select Access your Account → I'm worried about fraud on my account. If you'd rather read up on protecting your account generally before doing anything else, see Tips and tricks to keep your EasyEquities account secure or Stranger danger! (spotting fake EasyEquities accounts and impersonators).