Martin Austermuhle reports: The D.C. Department of Human Services says it mistakenly disclosed confidential information of close to 1,500 households receiving housing assistance to a homeless advocacy group, which then used the information to contact those people directly — a move that the city agency says was unethical, but that the group defends as being in the…
Category: Government Sector
2 ministers leave Swedish Cabinet in wake of security breach
The Associated Press reports: In a bid to avert a government crisis, Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven on Thursday reshuffled his minority Cabinet, replacing two members, after opposition parties demanded the ouster of three government ministers over one of the largest security breaches in the country’s history. Lofven says the heads of the interior and…
Huge Swedish Data Leak Punished With (Only?) Half a Month’s Paycheck
Catalin Cimpanu reports: The Swedish government has exposed sensitive details on millions of citizens in one of the biggest government screw-ups ever, and the official responsible for the whole fiasco was fined only half of her’s monthly salary, which is 70,000 Swedish krona — or around $8,500. The leak happened in September 2015, when the…
Alabama Man Indicted in Alleged $19 Million Stolen Identity Refund Fraud Scheme
A federal grand jury sitting in Montgomery, Alabama returned an indictment, which was unsealed, charging a Phenix City, Alabama resident with conspiring to file fraudulent refund claims, mail fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney A….
UK: Sutton Council apologizes after publishing names of benefit recipients in a ‘concerning’ data bungle
Liam McInerney reports: Sutton Council has apologised after it “inadvertently” published names of members of the public who have received benefit payments. Those who received payments in May and June this year for disability, adoption, fostering allowances, day care respite and special needs education that totalled over £500 had their names and payments listed on…
Over 5 million Social Security numbers exposed in Kansas breach: report
Morgan Chalfant reports: A breach of a Kansas Department of Commerce system exposed more than 5 million Social Security numbers to hackers, according to a report from a local news outlet. The Kansas News Service obtained information through a public records request that revealed that roughly 5.5 million Social Security numbers from individuals in 10 states were…