Over 39,000 Individuals Exposed in Marine Corps Data Breach

  • By Steven
  • Published: May 30, 2023
  • Last Updated: May 30, 2023

Marine Corps Data Breach

The US Marine Corps is a military service department that serves the US Department of Defense. The organization is responsible for provisioning and overseeing the marine troops and for most ground-based operations. This massive defensive organization is responsible for protecting the data of more than 177,200 active duty members as well as a large number of civilians that aid the forces as well. All of this data could be used in harmful ways if exposed. That's why it's unfortunate that the US Marine Corps suffered a recent data breach that could put more than 39,000 soldiers and civilians at risk. Learn all the details of this breach and see how potentially damaging the attack is. 

How Did the Attack Occur?

On May 9, 2023, a single unencrypted email was sent from inside Camp Pendleton that included a significant amount of personal data about marines, sailors, and civilians in the department. More than 39,000 people were exposed by this one email, and it contained a significant amount of data. The email wasn't discovered until May 12, 2023, and by then, it was too late to fix the situation. It's unclear who was responsible for sending this email, but it was a damaging act that put everyone's personal information at risk. 

What Information Was Viewed or Stolen?

The email included significant personal data about the many people involved, including Social Security numbers and home addresses, contact information, email addresses, bank account and routing numbers, full names, and more. All this data could be used for identity theft attacks, direct financial attacks, phishing attacks, and more. Anyone that was exposed to this breach is at risk of being hit by a follow-up attack, and they should be concerned about their data. 

How Did The US Marine Corps Admit to the Breach?

A spokesman from the US Marine Corps sent a statement to NBC 7 about the lost data. In that statement, a brief overview of the people affected and the information involved was covered. Anyone involved will receive a personalized notice about the breach informing them that they should monitor their information. 

What Will Become of the Stolen Information?

It's impossible to say how the exposed data will be used at this time. It's possible the information will be used to conduct phishing and identity theft attacks on the involved individuals. There is enough information for the person behind the email to break into bank accounts and attempt a series of fraudulent attacks on the involved soldiers and civilians. If you receive a notice informing you that your data was part of this breach, you should take action to guard yourself. 

What Should Affected Parties Do in the Aftermath of the Breach?

If you find out your data was involved in this breach, you must take steps to safeguard yourself as much as possible. Begin by monitoring your credit and any bank accounts involved. Consider investing in identity theft protection services for your safety, and you should be wary of any strange emails you receive as well. Never give confidential data out through your email address, and avoid clicking any strange links sent to you through your email. 

About the Author
IDStrong Logo

Related Articles

Instagram Vulnerability Allowed Hackers Access to Control Your Phone

Security experts Check Point Research discovered a critical vulnerability while examining Instagra ... Read More

Alien Malware Infects More than 226 Mobile Apps and Steals Bank Data

As reported on September 24, 2020, by ZDNet and ThreatPost, a new strain of malware named “A ... Read More

Universal Health Systems Hit by Ransomware Attack

Universal Health Systems (UHS), a Fortune 500 company owning more than 400 hospitals across the co ... Read More

Exchange Server Bug Exposes a Big Risk to Hackers

Months after Microsoft released a patch to fix a serious flaw in MS Exchange Server, more than 61% ... Read More

Clients’ Bank Data Exposed in Blackbaud Ransomware Attack

Blackbaud software was victim to a ransomware attack last May, and new information suggests that c ... Read More

Latest Articles

Google Voice Scams: What They Are and How to Stay Safe

Google Voice Scams: What They Are and How to Stay Safe

Google Voice scams continue to pose a risk for users of this service. Scammers continuously attempt to lure users into divulging their verification PIN code.

What Are Pretexting Attacks: Scam Types and Security Tips?

What Are Pretexting Attacks: Scam Types and Security Tips?

Have you ever received a text from someone you do not know? Did you become alarmed by the message? Did the message contain information about you and the people you know?

What is a Time-based One-time Password (TOTP)?

What is a Time-based One-time Password (TOTP)?

Authentication is the process that verifies the user's identity to control access to resources, prevent unauthorized users from gaining access to the system, and record user activities (to hold them accountable for their activities).

Featured Articles

How to Buy a House with Bad Credit

How to Buy a House with Bad Credit

Buying your own home is the American Dream, but it might seem out of reach to those with bad credit. However, the good news is, if your credit is less than perfect, you do still have options and in most cases, can still buy a home.

How Secure Is Your Password? Tips to Improve Your Password Security

How Secure Is Your Password? Tips to Improve Your Password Security

Any good IT article on computers and network security will address the importance of strong, secure passwords. However, the challenge of good passwords is that most people have a hard time remembering them, so they use simple or obvious ones that pose a security risk.

Top 10 Senior Scams and How to Prevent Them

Top 10 Senior Scams and How to Prevent Them

Senior scams are becoming a major epidemic for two reasons. First, seniors often have a lot of money in the bank from a life of working hard and saving.

Notice

By proceeding with this scan, you agree to let IDStrong run a Free Scan of supplied parameters of your personal information and provide free preliminary findings in compliance with our Terms of Use and Privacy Notice. You consent to us using your provided information to complete the Free Scan and compare it against our records and breach databases or sources to provide your Free preliminary findings report.

Rest assured: IDStrong will not share your information with third parties or store your information beyond what is required to perform your scan and share your results.

Free Identity Threat Scan
Instantly Check if Your Personal Information is Exposed
All fields below are required
Please enter first name
Please enter last name
Please enter a city
Please select a state
Please enter an age
Please enter an email address
Close