OPM Hacked

[davsel]

For anyone who currently or has ever had a govt security clearance, your personal info may now be in the hands of the Chinese.
http://www.wsj.com/article_email/u-s-suspects-hackers-in-china-behind-government-data-breach-sources-say-1433451888-lMyQjAxMTE1NjA2NDYwMzQ2Wj
http://theconservativetreehouse.com/2015/06/04/breaking-massive-cyber-hack-of-every-federal-employees-information-complete-data-breach-of-office-of-personnel-management/

You know, everywhere you've lived, all your close relatives, your entire job history, your clearance level, your fingerprint cards, all of it.

I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later.

[TheGrey]

Son of a - ! [Bang]

[sellersm]

I can't say anything that won't get me in trouble... Question everything.

[Hound]

X100000000


Son of a - ! [Bang]

[cstone]

This is why Hillary Rodham Clinton is a genius. She kept all of her stuff on her secure, private server, in the basement [Sarcasm2]

I know someone who will be getting some more employer provided identity theft insurance. I just assume that I will be covered for the rest of my life [facepalm]

[BushMasterBoy]

omg...now they know obama isn't really a citizen

[Mazin]

Awesome, ask me that's a huge breach in National Security. Will anything be done about it, I seriously doubt it. Wouldn't want to piss of China enough to start cashing in some of our debt.

[Dave]

Well, shit.... That's probably both my wife and myself in that one.

[Irving]

Awesome, ask me that's a huge breach in National Security.

Climate Change strikes again!

[Gman]

The bums in DC aren't doing their jobs. Throw the bums out.

[airborneranger]

Awesome.....


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SouthPaw]

Put me on the list...

[Bailey Guns]

Well, shit.... That's probably both my wife and myself in that one.

Yeah...us, too. Course, we haven't had them since 1990. Hopefully that's long enough ago our records have been purged.

[Gman]

Yeah...us, too. Course, we haven't had them since 1990. Hopefully that's long enough ago our records have been purged.
My records go back even further than that. Hopefully my records were still on paper in a box somewhere. I can't imagine that the government would actually clean anything up. Just keep adding to the pile.

[theGinsue]

Well damn.

I have a whole lot more I'd like to say but it probably isn't in my best interest to do so.

[mcantar18c]

Bring it on, fuckers...

[Dave]

Apparently the records stolen go back to 1985.

http://news.yahoo.com/data-hacked-u-government-dates-back-1985-u-033556501.html

[BREATHER]

You want to know what really gripes me. I know it ain't their duty, but... Gates Zuckerman, Jobs team, ought to be able to come up with a foolproof anti- hacking method of preventing this. They're smart enough and we the citizens made them all wealthy beyond belief.....Let them give back and protect what they created....

[HoneyBadger]

Well, crap. I thought you were talking about the silver company, so I ignored this thread. Now I'm glad I read it.

I have to wonder though... I've had 5 different addresses since my last clearance investigation... Maybe that makes the whole identity theft and finding me thing a little harder. Either way, between all the major retailers that have reported millions of card breeches in the last few years, and now this, cash is looking like a better payment medium every day.

[Aloha_Shooter]

HoneyBadger, if this was indeed perpetrated by the Chicom government as some news reports indicate, this has nothing to do with identity theft to take out credit cards in your name. They're seeking information on who has clearances, who is in sensitive positions, and what they might be able to use as leverage.

BREATHER, first, it's really Really REALLY hard to create something "foolproof". There are a lot more fools than programmers out there, much less competent security architects.

Second, you're giving Zuckerman waaaaaaaaay too much credit. He glommed onto a stupid product but marketed it brilliantly (much like Bill Gates bought and sold brilliant products then leveraged them to make Microsoft #1 but Gates was an honest-to-God geek in many respects).

Third, you can take care of the vast bulk of personal identity concerns by thinking about what you're doing: stop posting personal details on Facebook and Twitter, quit "friending" so many people (does anybody really have 6000 personal friends that they are willing to share intimate information with in person? if not, why do it online?), etc.

Lastly, password discipline helps a lot. Obscure foreign words are an easy to way to make it harder on the dictionary attacks.

I'm undecided as to which contemporary "innovation" is dumber, Twitter or Facebook, but identity theft because of what people post on social media is a self-inflicted problem. Of course, none of this helps in the case of OPM just not doing their job in protecting sensitive information. DoD gives out letters of reprimand to people sending unencrypted email with personally identifying information these days but I doubt anyone at OPM will suffer for their maladministration; if anything, some dolt will probably get a promotion out of it for "fixing" a problem s/he created.

[Gman]

Apparently the records stolen go back to 1985.
[Faint]

[JohnnyDrama]

Good words Aloha_Shooter


Gates Zuckerman, Jobs team, ought to be able to come up with a foolproof anti- hacking method of preventing this. They're smart enough and we the citizens made them all wealthy beyond belief.....Let them give back and protect what they created

The capitalists mentioned above wont take action until it starts to affect their bottom line. They could come up with something if properly motivated. We click and they get paid. I think about the pre-interwebz days when I used to take cash to the post office, get a money order, and use "snail mail" to order parts and gear.


cash is looking like a better payment medium every day

Identity theft was the stuff of science fiction.

[HoneyBadger]

I honestly suspect they are looking for potential espionage targets, but PII is PII.

[thedave1164]

Due to the nature of my job, I sit outside the office of one of the IT security people for the gov, I have overheard some interesting conversations about this.

Even when he shuts his door, I can still hear his side of the conversation.

No, I cannot share what I have heard, but I can say I am not inspired.......

[thedave1164]

I honestly suspect they are looking for potential espionage targets, but PII is PII.

LOL, plenty of training about protecting PII, but the reality is poor protection.

[SamuraiCO]

Guess there will be a cry for more money for infrastructure.

[davsel]

Passing on an update I received in an email today:


Subject: Phishing Threat Advisory Against DoD Personnel - OPM data Loss

In the wake of the recent OPM data breach, US Army CID states a phishing email is being sent to DOD personnel asking them to click on hyperlinks and enter a personal PIN number to verify their Personal Information. This is a Phishing Attack!

A new phishing attack has surfaced that attempts to draw the attention of recipients with the subject line "Important Message from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management CIO", with the sender appearing to be OPM CIO. Users are actually directed to a fake website and asked to enter private information.

Be cautious, and never click on links in suspicious email you receive.

Additional info per OPM:

Were members of the military affected by the breach?

This incident did not affect military records. No contractors were affected unless they previously held Federal civilian positions. The incident affected current and former Federal civilian personnel, including Department of Defense civilian employees.

How long will it take to inform all the potential victims involved in the incident?

OPM will begin conducting notifications to affected individuals using email and/or USPS First Class mail on June 8, 2015 and will continue notifications on a rolling basis through June 19, 2015.

Can my family members also receive services if they are part of my file/records?

Family members of employees were not affected by this breach.

http://www.opm.gov/news/latest-news/announcements/frequently-asked-questions/

[Hound]

While I believe you got that email, I don't believe its contents. OPM is trying to control what it has little understanding of from what I am hearing in the background. I doubt 'the bad guys' went... "Hey, don't worry about the other stuff. We only need the official employees list not all those pesky contractors like Raytheon and Lockheed(to name a few). What do they really have.... They only build everything the Government runs"


Passing on an update I received in an email today:

[Monky]

Ha! A list I'm not on!


Sent by a free-range electronic weasel, with no sense of personal space.

[davsel]

Looks like the original story is correct. Security Clearance background investigations hacked ("exfilterated"?) at OPM.

http://news.yahoo.com/union-says-federal-workers-fell-victim-hackers-071851098--politics.html

In a statement, the White House said that on June 8, investigators concluded there was "a high degree of confidence that ... systems containing information related to the background investigations of current, former and prospective federal government employees, and those for whom a federal background investigation was conducted, may have been exfiltrated."