41,000 DHS personnel details exposed in major hack

Details of more than 41,000 personnel working for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have been made public following a major data breach. The information includes names, work addresses, and phone numbers of DHS staff, including those involved in immigration enforcement.

The leaked data also contains descriptions of the work each individual performs for various agencies, such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Over 21,000 of the agents listed work for CBP, while nearly 6,600 are affiliated with ICE.

The breach was accessed by a group called the Department of Peace, who then shared the information with journalist and cybersecurity researcher maia crimew and the website Distributed Denial of Secrets. The groups stated the leak was not intended to be a full directory of all DHS agents but aimed to promote accountability.

The leaked information also includes dozens of previously unknown operation names, the agents that led and worked on those operations, and some of the technology they used in their work, including tech provided by Cellbrite and Palantir. Emma Best, a co-founder of DDoSecrets, described the leak as an effort to replace anonymity with accountability.

A spokesperson for the Department of Peace pointed to actions by ICE agents as the reason for the breach, citing a statement from Markwayne Mullin on July 17th. Okta, a security tool used by many organizations, confirmed awareness of the claims but stated there is no evidence its systems were compromised.

This breach follows recent hacking incidents, including an FBI hack by ShinyHunters and a suspected hacking attempt against the Federal Election Commission. Public backlash against US immigration enforcement has been increasing, with immigration operations this year involving violent incidents, including the shooting of at least nine people by ICE agents.