Max Verstappen's Private Information 'Leaked' by Hackers as FIA Issue Response

Max Verstappen's private information was exposed in a data breach by hackers, prompting a response from the FIA.

The four-time world champion was one of the drivers affected by a breach of the FIA website over the summer.

The incident was revealed on October 22 by security researcher Ian Carroll, who said the FIA addressed vulnerabilities in their system after they were alerted in June.

Hackers had compromised the FIA's Driver Categorisation website, which contains information on nearly 7,000 drivers, and were able to access sensitive personal information for all of them.

However, they said they did not access or retain any sensitive information and immediately reported their findings back to the FIA.

Carroll wrote: “We stopped testing after seeing that it was possible to access Max Verstappen’s passport, résumé, license, password hash, and PII [personally identifiable information.

Max Verstappen has been caught up in a data breach. (Image: Getty)

“This data could be accessed for all F1 drivers with a categorisation, alongside sensitive information of internal FIA operations.

"We did not access any passports [or] sensitive information and all data has been deleted.”

Although Carroll and the two other hackers did not keep the information, the incident was an embarrassing moment for the governing body.

In a statement to RaceFans, the FIA said: "The FIA became aware of a cyber incident involving the FIA Driver Categorisation website over the summer.

“Immediate steps were taken to secure drivers’ data, and the FIA reported this issue to the applicable data protection authorities in accordance with the FIA’s obligations.

“It has also notified the small number of drivers impacted by this issue.

"No other FIA digital platforms were impacted in this incident.”

The FIA have responded after Verstappen saw his personal information leaked. (Image: Getty)

The FIA reportedly took the website offline on June 3, when they were notified of the breach, and implemented a "comprehensive fix" one week later.

The governing body added that it has “invested extensively in cyber security and resilience measures across its digital estate” through "world-class data security measures."

For Verstappen, his focus will remain on this weekend's Mexican Grand Prix, as he hunts a record-equalling fifth consecutive world title.

Despite being 104 points behind world championship leader Oscar Piastri earlier in the season, Verstappen has reduced the deficit to just 40 points.

Having won three of the last four races, he has admitted that the world title is within reach.

Although he conceded that Red Bull would need to be "perfect" to secure the crown.

With championship rivals Lando Norris and Piastri both chasing a maiden world title, Verstappen will hope his experience proves the decisive difference in the final weeks of the season.