DC Board of Elections hit with major hack by  cybercriminals who stole voter data and records

Trending 1 month ago
  • The information breach was carried retired earlier this period by a known hacking group
  • Voter information, specified arsenic driver's licenses, is now connected nan acheronian web 
  • The FBI and Homeland Security are assisting pinch nan investigation
  • READ MORE:  Details 40 MILLION voters are exposed successful a cyber attack

By Stacy Liberatore For Dailymail.com

Published: 12:00 EDT, 24 October 2023 | Updated: 12:02 EDT, 24 October 2023

Social information numbers, driver's licenses and different individual accusation of thousands of Americans were stolen from a elector registration agency.

The District of Columbia Board of Elections (DCBOE) revealed that its afloat elector rotation systems were accessed successful a information breach this month, allowing hackers to place circumstantial individuals.

A hacking group known arsenic RansomVC accessed 600,000 lines of data, including DC voter records, and is now trading nan information connected nan acheronian web.

DCBOE stated it is moving pinch national authorities partners, for illustration Homeland Security and nan Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), to resoluteness nan rumor - and has not revealed really important nan hack mightiness be.

Social information numbers, driver's licenses and different individual accusation of thousands of Americans were stolen from a elector registration agency. The District of Columbia Board of Elections revealed that its afloat elector rotation systems were accessed successful a information breach this month

The information breach happened connected October 5, which saw RansomVC entree nan web server of DataNet, nan hosting provider, DCBOE shared successful an October 6 property release.

DCBOE besides shared that nan stolen information came from voters participating successful its canvas process from August 9, 2019 to January 25, 2022.

But, nan agency claims less than 4,000 voters were impacted. 

While a mostly of nan accusation is nationalist record, specified arsenic reside and governmental affiliation, partial societal information numbers and driver's licenses were accessed - capable accusation for hackers to portion together individual identities.

'Once reviewed internally, DCBOE will stock what nonstop elector accusation was accessed and will interaction individuals that are impacted,' a connection from nan committee said. 

Roger Grimes, data-driven defense evangelist astatine KnowBe4, commented connected nan imaginable for breaches of this benignant to alteration further criminal activity. 

A hacking group known arsenic RansomVC accessed 600,000 lines of data, including DC elector records, and is now trading nan information connected nan acheronian web. The agency has unopen down its website until further announcement but shared that DC residents are safe to registry to vote

'As always, these sorts of information breach incidents induce malicious actors to beryllium capable to create much circumstantial spear phishing emails wherever imaginable victims are contacted by a sender who purports to beryllium a morganatic contact,' Grimes said.

'The inclusion of stolen specifications allows nan attacker to look much morganatic than if they did not person nan stolen data. 

'And spear phishing emails are acold much apt to discuss imaginable victims than a wide phishing email pinch nary backstage specifications astir nan victim.' 

DCBOE said it plans to interaction each registered voters soon and activity pinch cybersecurity consulting patient Mandiant for nan adjacent steps. 

The agency has unopen down its website until further announcement but shared that DC residents are safe to registry to vote.