The recent federal government data breach is one of the largest known cyber-attacks on federal networks. The computer systems of the federal Office of Personnel Management were hacked, resulting in a breach that affected the records of approximately 4 million past and current federal employees.
Information that was compromised included:
- Federal employee birth dates, social security numbers, and bank information
- Personnel data going back to 1985, including retiree information and current
- Security clearance information
- Background checks on federal employees going back 3 decades
This the second federal government data breach on the Office of Personnel Management in a year. Investigators have linked the current federal government data breach to the Anthem, Inc. breach which compromised personal data from millions of records.
Some U.S. government officials believe the breach originated in China and, because of that, are investigating the breach as a matter of national security. However, Chinese government officials are claiming that these accusations are irresponsible, pointing out that hacking attacks are often cross-border and hard to trace.
According to the Reuters news organization,
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said, “It’s not clear who the perpetrators are,” but he noted that President Barack Obama and his aides regularly raise with their Chinese counterparts concerns about Chinese behavior in cyberspace.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched a probe into the cyber-attack and is promising to hold those responsible for the attack accountable. In the meantime, one thing is clear – all organizations are at risk of data security breaches and need to have policies, procedures, and plans in place to reduce their exposure and liability.
Contact us if you are a business owner or manager looking for policies, procedures, and plans to help reduce your exposure and liability concerning data storage. Whether data containing devices that are in use or obsolete – we have resources to help you protect your company’s sensitive data.