The latest data breach has exposed sensitive details of Americans, including Social Security numbers, names, and addresses from the past 30 years. The leak also includes information about relatives, such as parents and siblings.
The breach was exposed after a notorious hacking group released much of the data for free on an online marketplace for stolen information. Teresa Murray, Consumer Watchdog Director for the U.S. Public Information Research Group, highlighted the severity of the breach, warning that it could lead to widespread identity theft and fraud.
“This incident is more concerning than past breaches due to the comprehensive dossier on individuals,” Murray said. “If people weren’t careful before, this should serve as a major warning.”
A class-action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, alleges that the hacking group USDoD claimed in April to have stolen personal records of 2.9 billion people from National Public Data. This data broker provides personal information to employers, private investigators, and staffing agencies. The group allegedly tried to sell the data on a hacker forum for $3.5 million, according to a cybersecurity expert’s post on X.
Recently, a supposed member of USDoD, known as “Felice,” announced on the hacking forum that they were offering “the full NPD database.” BleepingComputer shared a screenshot showing that the data includes about 2.7 billion records, each containing a person’s full name, address, date of birth, Social Security number, phone number, and any alternative names and birth dates.
National Public Data has not officially commented on the alleged breach or notified the affected individuals. However, they have been responding to inquiries by stating, “We are aware of certain third-party claims about consumer data and are investigating these issues.” They added that they have “purged the entire database” to remove all non-public personal information, but have kept certain records to meet legal obligations.
Cybersecurity news outlets have reviewed parts of the leaked Social Security numbers data offered by Felice and report that it seems to be authentic. If the leaked data is genuine, individuals must understand the risks and take immediate steps to protect themselves.
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