A data breach at the Pentagon’s vast HR system has exposed Social Security numbers and other personal information of current and former military personnel, raising counterintelligence concerns among national security experts.
“Unauthorized users” gained access to a vulnerable computer server belonging to the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) beginning last October, but it wasn’t until nine months later, in July, that the Pentagon discovered and remediated the issue, according to a letter the center sent to victims of the breach reviewed by CNN.
The DMDC maintained at least 60 million records as of fiscal 2024, according to its website. It’s unclear how many have been impacted, but Military Times reported that four million Department of Defense personnel could be affected by the breach.
I just realized, with this list and a little spearphishing one could create a lucrative business as a middleman for national security information of all kinds.
Adversaries are often more interested in logistics details and surprisingly key people in logistics chains, than they are in the secret designs for flashy weapons platforms.
5g warfare goes after the frustrated low-level Private Pencil Pusher who has to make sure the procedures are followed, not the actual weapons he helps coordinate.