The US Cyber Security Under Threat After The Massive Data Breach

The US faced a massive hit where the data was breached and compromised the security of the nation. The US says it faces a “dedicated adversary” and an “ever evolving threat” to the nation’s cyber security after the reported major data breach that took place few days ago. The hacking of federal government computers may have compromised the records of four million employees. US officials have blamed China for the attack but the Chinese have denied any involvement.

Four million current and former US government employees are being told to take precautions. They have been told to monitor or close bank accounts, freeze credit reports, and change online passwords. Some have spoken to the BBC expressing fears over how their personal information will be used. “Identity theft is one thing I’m concerned about,” said Bryan Sivak, a former technology officer with the Department of Health and Human Services. “But depending on what information was accessed, I’m more worried about this information being used to illegally access various networks or against individuals directly.”

At a White House briefing on Friday, a spokesman said the US faced a “dedicated adversary”, and the question of who carried out the attack was the focus of an ongoing FBI investigation. J David Cox Sr, president of the largest union representing federal employees, says he “will demand accountability” and push for the information to be secured. Steve Hodge, a former employee of the Food and Drug Administration said that if anyone had possession of this information, they could impersonate me.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) said it became aware of the breach in April during an “aggressive effort” to update its cyber security. In order to mitigate the risk of fraud and identity theft, OPM is offering affected individuals credit monitoring services and identity theft insurance with CSID, a company that specializes in identity theft protection and fraud resolution. This comprehensive, 18-month membership includes credit report access, credit monitoring, identity theft insurance, and recovery services and is available immediately at no cost to affected individuals identified by OPM.

OPM serves as the human resource department for the federal government. The agency issues security clearances and compiles records of all federal government employees. The Chinese and the South Koreans are notorious in many tech advancement and hacking, according to the US the Chinese who are believed to have caused the data breach will create unfriendly talks between the two nations and can lead to a cyberwar.

Erick Vateta564 Posts

--- Erick Vateta is a lawyer by training, poet, script and creative writer by talent, a model, and tech enthusiast. He covers International tech trends, data security and cyber attacks.

Login

Welcome! Login in to your account

Remember me Lost your password?

Lost Password