U-Haul Breach Leaves Customers Struggling
Table of Contents
- By Steven
- Published: Sep 21, 2022
- Last Updated: Sep 22, 2022
Sometime between November 5th, 2021, and April 5th, 2022, U-Haul International was hacked, leaking the information of millions of users to some unknown entity. The breach was discovered on August 1st, 2022, and the company began to alert customers and users about the breach on September 9th, 2022.
How Did the Attack Occur?
U-Haul stated that they had discovered two of their passwords were compromised, leading to an unknown person gaining access to confidential client information. The international corporation began investigating the breach in July of 2022. After a few weeks of searching through their systems, they confirmed the data breach and pushed reassurances to consumers. They began alerting customers of the hack on September 9th, 2022, sending out notifications to anyone that signed contracts during the six months between November 5th, 2021, and April 5th, 2022
What Information Was Accessed?
U-Haul users may be worried, and for a good reason. While the company has assured all customers that the hacked piece of software had nothing to do with credit or debit card information, millions of consumers' driver's license information was accessed and exposed to the hacker. On September 7th, 2022, U-Haul identified the individuals whose information was involved and alerted them to the issue.
How Did U-Haul Alert the Public?
U-haul began to send out emails to any and all customers that may have been affected on September 9th. Many of their clients are outraged by this. "I might not have never got the notice because so far, I have not got a paper in the mail or notification for U-Haul," Jamie Clark, a worried consumer, said. "So had I deleted my email, I might not have known or taken the necessary steps." U-haul has also put a notice on its website explaining what happened and what customers can do to help themselves.
What Will Become of the Stolen Information?
As with most data breaches, the full extent is not known; therefore, we don't necessarily know exactly what can happen to the information. Hackers often sell things like stolen driver's licenses and addresses on the dark web. If someone has your license number, they can open up accounts and cards under your name, which can thoroughly ruin your credit score and bank account. Your future, your reputation, and your physical and mental health can all be affected by identity theft.
What Can You Do to Protect Yourself?
U-Haul released a statement on their website: "We encourage impacted customers to remain vigilant by reviewing account statements and credit reports for any unauthorized activity." The best thing that you can do is to stay safe and be careful when online.
Pay attention to your credit score, manage notifications, and install software designed to protect you. You can find various protectors for your personal information, such as identity monitoring services. They will notify you when your name, social security number, or other self-identifying information is found on sketchy websites. This way, you can spend your time focusing on the beautiful parts of life, not the ones you should be scared of.
