A news item is grabbing headlines in the press, as well as the attention of the United States. It is about the alleged theft of all the Social Security numbers in the country, according to CBS News.
A new lawsuit claims hackers have gained access to the personal information of “billions of people.”
The alleged theft includes their Social Security numbers, current and former addresses, the names of siblings and parents, etc. In general, personal data that could allow scammers to infiltrate financial accounts or apply for loans in their names.
The allegation arose in a lawsuit filed earlier this month by Christopher Hofmann, a California resident who claimed his identity theft protection service alerted him that his personal information had been leaked to the dark web in the “nationalpublicdata.com” breach.
The breach reportedly occurred around April 2024. That’s when a hacker group called USDoD obtained the unencrypted personal information of millions of people from a company called National Public Data (NPD).
Just earlier this month, a hacker leaked a version of the stolen NPD data for free on a hacking forum.
He himself claimed that the stolen files include 2.7 billion records, and that each one includes the full name, address, date of birth, Social Security number and phone number of each person. Curiously, the NPD did not immediately respond to comments and posts on the subject.
How do I protect my information?
Security experts recommend freezing your credit files at the big three agencies, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. This step is completely free and will prevent hackers from applying for loans or opening credit cards in your name.
You can also get a tracking service that will alert you if your data appears on the dark web. Use two-factor authentication as another security measure, this will make it harder for hackers to access your accounts.
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