You’re probably one of more than two billion people whose personal data has been stolen from national public databases in a massive breach, leaving the leaked information available to criminals to lure new victims.
Here’s what was leaked in the National Public Data Breach, and everything else you need to know about the leak.
What happened to national public data?
Earlier this year, cybercriminals stole a huge amount of personal data of approximately 2.9 billion people for the national public data.
National Public Data is the nation’s leading provider of background and credit checks.
After holding the data for several months, the group behind the heist allegedly sold the files on the dark web.
National Public Data acknowledged the breach on its website.
“We appear to have experienced a data security incident which may involve some of your personal information,” the National Public Data update reads. “The incident is believed to have involved a third-party malicious actor attempting to hack into data in late December 2023, which may result in the exposure of certain data in April 2024 and summer 2024.”
“The information allegedly leaked included names, email addresses, phone numbers, Social Security numbers and mailing addresses.”
What to do if you believe your data was included in a national public data breach
National Public Data didn’t offer any direct solutions on its website, instead suggesting people monitor their credit reports and stay in touch with the three major credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
We also recommend freezing your credit cards if you believe you may have been the victim of a national public data breach.
“As a first step, we recommend closely monitoring your financial accounts and contacting your financial institution immediately if you notice any unauthorized activity,” advises National Public Data. “As a second step, we recommend contacting the three U.S. credit reporting agencies by calling 1-877-322-8228 or logging on to www.annualcreditreport.com to obtain a free credit report from each agency.”
What is National Public Data doing about data breaches?
A spokesman for National Public Data said on its website that the company was working to determine the cause of the breach and to strengthen its systems.
“We have cooperated with law enforcement and government investigators to conduct an investigation into any records that may have been affected, and will notify you of any significant developments that concern our customers,” National Public Data’s website states. “We have also implemented additional security measures to prevent any such breach from occurring again and to protect our systems.”
Damon C. Williams is a Philadelphia-based journalist covering stories in the Mid-Atlantic region.
