September 2024 - How the NPD Breach May Affect Traditional Verification Measures

The National Public Data breach seems primed to become one of the most notable cyberattacks in recent memory, which perhaps shouldn't be surprising given that nearly three billion records were exposed in the incident.

And those records included data such as names, addresses, dates of birth, phone numbers and Social Security numbers. Given the large volume of information stolen in the breach, and the sensitive nature of the data that was exposed, the fallout from the cyberattack will likely not be assuaged any time soon.

Any time sensitive information is stolen in a data breach, victims will be concerned about the increased risk of identity theft, not to mention how their information could be leveraged for further cyberattacks.

While a lot of the data breaches that make headlines often have victims in the millions, the NPD breach is on another level, and will be a headache for a long time, and it isn’t just the large volume of records that is the problem.

The data points that have been compromised in the NPD breach are rather comprehensive. These records contain all of the data points bad actors may need to steal a person’s identity. Thus, an incredibly large number of people are now at risk, and that can cause even issues for not only victims of the breach, but other institutions as well.

One way it will be a headache is how it will affect traditional verification methods, and this blog post will explore just how that may happen.

Traditional Verification Methods Will Be Tested Following NPD Breach

While not every one of the nearly three billion records had a Social Security number tied to it, it’s safe to assume that many of them made their way into the hands of bad actors.

This means that Social Security numbers could be used to conduct instances of identity theft, and it will be challenging for both data breach victims and for any organization that processes the numbers.

NPD breach victims will, of course, be concerned their SSN could be leveraged to open accounts or commit fraud in their name. This could lead to a number of troubling outcomes, including the loss of money, damage to their credit score, legal troubles and emotional stress.

Organizations processing these Social Security numbers could face an increased number of applications, either in the immediate future or down the line. With a potentially massive number of Social Security numbers out in the open, these organizations may face a deluge of phony applications.

And that’s not even touching upon the other exposed data points. Phone numbers were among the compromised information. Now, data breach victims are potentially open to phone-based phishing attacks, and SMS text message multifactor authentication could be at risk as well.

To Whether the Storm, Everyone Will Need to Act

Similar to other data breaches that have been reported over the years, the best way for everyone to move forward and feel safe is to take action, and to do so sooner rather than later.

To assuage concerns over identity theft, data breach victims should take the time to place a credit freeze and fraud alert on their accounts with the three major credit reporting agencies, Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. It’s also a good idea to monitor accounts for fraudulent activity and to take advantage of any credit monitoring services you can.

This way, data breach victims will know whenever anyone attempts to use their Social Security number at all times. The National Public Data incident is not the first breach to compromise Social Security numbers, but it’s hard to find many past attacks where the number of SSNs exposed could be in the billions.

That’s why, on an individual scale, anyone who may be affected by the NPD breach should take these actions as fast as they can.

Organizations that process SSNs should ensure they have all the software and practices in place to detect possible instances of fraud. It’s important to implement and maintain these practices, as bad actors will likely not use these pieces of information right away, especially when the NPD breach is still in the news.

Vigilance is going to be necessary for all involved. Billions of people could be at risk for identity fraud, and it’s entirely possible that victims of this breach may not experience the negative ramifications until years from now.

But that doesn’t mean everyone has to wait until the other shoe drops. By taking proactive steps, everyone can potentially protect themselves from the worst possible outcomes, even if the traditional verification measures normally used come under stress by those who wish to cause harm.