Trump’s DHS hit by data breach as hackers expose records of 41,000 employees

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has fallen victim to a significant data breach, exposing the personal information of over 41,000 employees and contractors. This includes thousands of personnel from various agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The leaked data, accessible through an online database named "Icepick," revealed names, work addresses, phone numbers, and job descriptions of these individuals.

The activist group "Department of Peace" claimed to have accessed the information via a single sign-on service utilized by DHS employees. However, cybersecurity researcher Maia Arson Crimew and the nonprofit Distributed Denial of Secrets played a role in making the data public. In response to the breach, a DHS spokesperson acknowledged the potential security threat and emphasized the agency's commitment to addressing the situation. They assured that further updates would be provided as more information became available.

The leaked records detailed over 21,000 personnel working for CBP and nearly 6,600 associated with ICE. Other records covered employees from the Homeland Security Investigations, Federal Protective Service, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. However, the groups responsible for the disclosure clarified that the database was not meant to be a comprehensive directory of all DHS employees but rather aimed to replace anonymity with accountability.