Theft of Data Affecting 237k US Federal Employees
According to officials briefed on the situation on Friday, a breach of information at the US Transportation Department (USDOT) revealed the private info of 2,37,000 present and past federal workers.
The compromise impacted the systems to process TRANServe transit advantages, which pay some commuting expenses for government workers. It was unclear whether any of the individual details had been utilized illegally.
In an email obtained by Reuters, USDOT informed Congress on Friday that its preliminary investigation into the data breach “separated the compromise from specific systems at the agency that is used for administrative tasks, like employee transit benefits handling.”
According to a statement from USDOT to Reuters, no transportation safety systems were impacted by the intrusion. It made no mention of the potential hacker.
The official said that access to the transit benefit system has been suspended while the agency conducts an investigation and until the system has been secured and restored.
The highest benefit limit for government employees’ mass transport commuting expenses is $280 per month. In addition, 1,14,000 present employees and 1,23,000 previous employees were affected by the hack.
Moreover, cyber attackers have previously targeted federal workers and institutions.
More than 22 million individuals’ private information was stolen as a result of two breaches at the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in 2014 and 2015, involving 4.2 million existing and federal workers and the fingerprints of 5.6 million of those persons.
Unclassified Justice Department networks were accessed by alleged Russian hackers using SolarWinds and Microsoft software, and they also viewed emails at the Treasury, Commerce, and Homeland Security departments. According to Reuters, nine federal agencies were compromised in 2021.
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