Last week, the United States witnessed what is likely one of the largest data breaches in history. National Public Data (NPD), a prominent background check firm, confirmed the staggering leak of 2.7 billion records, including nearly 900 million unique Social Security numbers (SSNs). Although the breach occurred in December 2023, it is only now being disclosed, leaving millions of people vulnerable to a wide range of malicious activities. The stolen data is already circulating online, amplifying the risks of identity theft, fraud, and other forms of cybercrime.
What You Can Do to Protect Yourself
If you’re concerned that your personal information may have been compromised, there are proactive steps you can take to safeguard your identity:
1. Freeze Your Credit Reports: Contact all three major credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion—to freeze your credit. This will prevent potential fraudsters from opening new accounts or taking out loans in your name.
For more information on freezing your credit report, visit: https://www.usa.gov/credit-freeze
2. Enroll in Fraud Monitoring Services: Add fraud monitoring services that can alert you to suspicious activity on your credit cards and bank accounts. Many services also provide real-time notifications if someone tries to use your Social Security number for fraudulent purposes.
Why This Breach is Worse Than Others
While data breaches have become a common occurrence, the exposure of Social Security numbers in this breach elevates its severity. Unlike other sensitive data that can be changed or updated, Social Security numbers are permanent. This makes them a goldmine for threat actors, who can use them to complete and enhance other stolen data sets, enabling more sophisticated and long-lasting fraud schemes.
SSNs are the key to opening accounts, applying for credit, and even filing false tax returns. Once compromised, they offer criminals a way to fill in the gaps of other stolen personal information, amplifying the risks of identity theft, loan fraud, and more.
Stopping Data Theft and Data Exploitation
The recent breach highlights the urgent need for more robust solutions to protect data from theft and exploitation. At Calamu, we believe true protection is achieved by rearchitecting how data is stored. That’s why we’ve developed the Calamu Data Harbor—a revolutionary data repository purpose-built to secure sensitive information from exfiltration and withstand cyberattacks.
The Calamu Data Harbor transforms the way data is stored. Even in the event of a breach, threat actors are unable to access any usable data. Instead, they’re left with encrypted fragments—what we refer to as “digital sludge.” This innovative approach ensures that any stolen data remains entirely useless to attackers, eliminating the risk of exploitation. By focusing on securing data at the core, Calamu’s solution provides peace of mind in an increasingly vulnerable digital landscape.
Want to learn more about how the Data Harbor works?
Join a monthly product briefing for a quick introduction or request a personalized demonstration here.
