More than 237K Government Employees Exposed by DOT-Related Data Breach

  • By Steven
  • Published: May 15, 2023
  • Last Updated: May 15, 2023

DOT Data Breach

The US Government employs more than 1.8 million individuals, and a large group of those employees was recently exposed by a serious data breach. This breach impacted government employees that use the TRANServe transit benefits program from the government to cover some of their commuting costs to and from work. Over 237,000 current and past members of the program were exposed during this breach. 

How Did the Attack Occur?

There are no specific details about how the data breach was possible, only that it occurred before May 12, when news about the breach came out to the public. The breach was quickly isolated to stop it from doing more harm, but before that, it led to significant issues and data losses. 

What Information Was Viewed or Stolen?

We don't know exactly what information was exposed in this breach yet, only that it's personal in nature. It's likely that the government will send out personal notices to everyone suspected of being involved in this breach because of the personal nature of the exposed data. Without more details, we can assume that either financial data or serious documents such as a driver's license or Social Security number were released throughout the course of this data breach based on the filing. 

How Did the US Government Admit to the Breach?

Government officials sent an email explaining this data breach to the public. Reuters was among the news outlets that saw the email and drafted a report about the breach. In the email, it's explained that the breach was focused on specific administrative sections of the government and impacted the TRANServe transit program more than anything else. That means if you rely on this program to reimburse some of your commuting costs, you may have been exposed by this breach. Along with the email report, the government will begin drafting and sending out personal notices to anyone involved in this breach because of the personal nature of the released information. 

What Will Become of the Stolen Information?

We don't know the specifics about the information stolen, but it's likely anything taken will be used in an attempt to generate profits for the attackers. This means personal data will be leveraged for identity theft attacks. It's also possible that phishing attacks will be generated with data stolen from these government employees. It's uncertain if the hackers will be able to gain access to any other government systems with the data taken from the employees in the transit system. 

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

If you get a notice informing you that you may be impacted by this government breach, you should take immediate steps to protect yourself. Monitor your financial accounts, get a credit report, and consider investing in identity theft protection services or credit monitoring services. The more you know about what's happening with your credit, the safer you will be from these attacks. Also, avoid giving away private information via email to anyone that requests it. If someone requests personal or financial information over email, they are almost certainly an attacker.

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