Amazon revealed names and email addresses of its customers on website, ahead of Black Friday. Credit: Christian Wiediger on Unsplash

Online retailer Amazon has suffered a data leak which saw names and email addresses of its customers being disclosed on its site, just ahead of the Black Friday.

The firm has emailed the affected users.  However, it did not disclose how many customers have been impacted.

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It is believed that emails could have been sent to customers across the world, besides members of the Amazon Vine review programme, reported The Telegraph.

According to the firm, the issue occurred due to a technical error and not because of a security breach of its website and systems.

Amazon said in a statement: “We have fixed the issue and informed customers who may have been impacted.”

“We have fixed the issue and informed customers who may have been impacted.”

Amazon’s email to its customers reads: “Our website inadvertently disclosed your email address or name and email address due to a technical error. The issue has been fixed. This is not a result of anything you have done, and there is no need for you to change your password or take any other action. The impacted customers have been contacted.”

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It also added: “Amazon takes all security-related matters very seriously and your account security is our top priority. We have policies and security measures in place to ensure that your personal information remains secure.”

The breach comes just ahead of Black Friday, the day following Thanksgiving Day in the US. This is considered to be the busiest shopping day of the year. Black Friday sales have already begun on Amazon website.

According to a research by payment provider ACI, retail fraud attempts are expected to increase by 14% across the Black Friday to Cyber Monday period.