Vets’ PII at risk?
WSBTV reports that Department of Veterans’ Affairs computers may have been hacked by the Chinese and that your personally identifiable information (PII) wasn’t properly encrypted. So your identity might have compromised – yet again;
MacFarlane reviewed a congressional report that said eight foreign actors, likely Chinese hackers, have infiltrated the VA’s computer network, potentially getting hold of Social Security numbers and other private data of men and women in uniform.
Veteran Marine Jessie Duff said she’s scared someone’s poised to steal her identity.
“Being a veteran, our data is a little more sensitive. I have health records with them. I have financial data with them,” Duff said.
The revelations came during a recent hearing at the U.S. House Veterans Affairs committee. A former security technician for the VA acknowledged millions of veterans don’t have their personal information properly encrypted by the VA.
Chinese military are reportedly among the suspected hackers.
I got a letter from the VA about eight years ago that my information might have been compromised whn a VA employee left his computer in his car and it was stolen, so I got Lifelock. Then I noticed that the VA never tells veterans in a timely manner about lost information, so I just pay every year – like life insurance to protect my information. A couple of years ago, my wife bought a new car and put me down as the co-signer, Lifelock notified me while she was still at the dealer – so I know it works.
If the government has your PII, I think it’s reasonable to accept that they’re not the best custodians of your personal information, so you need to be pro-active, since they certainly have no interest in it.
Category: Veterans Issues
IT Security is rather like the police. They both claim to prevent harm–and to some extent do–but what they are really good at is confirming that a crime was committed. Of course, that’s none to helpful to the victim.
I just enrolled in Lifelock myself, after considering it for awhile. A relative put a couple of bills in my name in the past without me knowing until they popped up in collections on the credit report. For a while I had an address listed in Alabama, where I’ve never stayed more than a night (a bit of research showed someone with a similar name lived there). Then last year, my bank account info was compromised and some person or persons in India spent a few hundred dollars (which my financial institution caught at the same time I did, and reapplied the funds to my account). I’ve been doing the credit lock through the bureaus for the past year or so (free, but it is only good for 3 months before it must be renewed), but Lifelock seems worth the money so far.
I received a letter from the VA myself a number of years ago. Also, the Army only recently took precautions to reduce the possibility of identity theft, eliminating SSNs from most of their forms and documents. Since I just started Lifelock, I’m paying $22.50 a month with the military discount. If they continue to impress, they’ll start getting a yearly payment from this customer.
I’ve gotten a letter everytime from the VA when something like this happens. Being an “odd” name in the system it apparently makes me an easier target from what one of the letters stated. I am signing up with Lifelock as we speak, this is getting ridiculous.
I have received letters from the VA 3 times…. I work here, and it pisses me the hell off. All I do all day long is deal with Veterans PII and then some.
The carelessness of the other incidents is mind boggling ,the fact that the Chinese are inside our networks and we cannot even tell what they are stealing is mind boggling. This has been going on for some time now according to the story, and they have not been able to stop them. Well shit, I know it would be a huge inconvenience, but pull the damned plug!Shut down the ports, shut down access to the network, just take it offline til they can plug the holes that apparently you could sail the Titanic through.
Your PII was sold by Mastercard and Visa and all of your banks years ago. Google watches your every click to ensure they can sell your browsing habits to Wall Street.
The government has your PII and loses it with a regularity that would make bran jealous. It’s a great way of intimidating veterans – participate in a TEA Party rally, and find your bank account drained and insurance cancelled.