Data breach at US Department of Homeland Security exposes 41,000 employee records
Sensitive personal data of over 41,000 Department of Homeland Security employees was compromised after a hacker exploited the Okta identity platform.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has confirmed a significant data breach involving the personal information of more than 41,000 employees. The compromised data includes names, job titles, contact information, and physical office locations, raising concerns regarding personnel safety and internal security.
The breach heavily impacted staff at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), with CBP employees accounting for roughly 21,000 of the stolen records. A hacker identified as "Department of Peace" is reported to be responsible for the unauthorized access.
The intruder gained entry by exploiting vulnerabilities within Okta, an identity and access management service utilized by the agency. In addition to personal data, the stolen files contained details linking specific agencies to various surveillance tools. This incident highlights ongoing vulnerabilities in federal cybersecurity infrastructure when relying on third-party authentication services.