A hacking group exposed the information of more than 40,000 employees at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including personnel involved in undercover and sensitive missions as well as immigration enforcement operations.
The information published includes names, job titles, cell phone numbers, and office locations of DHS workers.
About 21,000 of the stolen records belonged to employees at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), while 10,000 belonged to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Hackers also obtained records from about 1,000 employees at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) as well as other DHS departments.
Data Reportedly Stolen from Single Sign-On System
A so-called “hacktivist” group operating under the name Department of Peace claimed it stole the data from an Okta single sign-on system used by DHS employees and contractors to access the department's central network. The group said it distributed the material to Distributed Denial of Secrets and a Swiss hacker, who subsequently published it in an online database.
In a statement, DHS said it was "aware of a potential breach and is actively working to address the situation swiftly and effectively." DHS added that it is taking necessary steps to "ensure all are properly protected."
The hacking group says its goal is to increase oversight and transparency of DHS immigration enforcement operations.
Former Acting ICE Director Calls Breach a “Nightmare Scenario”
Former Acting ICE Director John Sandweg told the Washington Post that the breach is a “nightmare scenario” that could put agents and their families in jeopardy while also threatening criminal investigations.
“I feel terrible for the agents and their families,” Sandweg said. “The array of threats they face as a result of this is stunning.”
A former ICE official told the Post that HSI’s intelligence unit issued a bulletin alerting agents about the hack.
But multiple ICE and CBP officers reached by the Post using contact information from the data leak, said they had not been informed about it.
FBI Reported Breach
The breach comes just weeks after another hacking group claimed to have stolen thousands of records from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), including information on FBI agents and job applicants.
In a statement at the time, the FBI said it was aware of the breach and was “actively and aggressively investigating this matter and working closely with those third-party providers that support.”
