US Border Hack Shows Up Missing Images Running In Huge Numbers

Images of thousands who crossed the US-Mexico border were hacked in a hacking effort, as per the CBP.A subcontractor’s network was affected by the breach. A number of license plate images were also stolen. However, less than 100,000 were likely to be affected. CBP denied rumors that images had been leaked over dark web platforms.

CBP alerted Congress and currently is working along with cyber-security and law enforcement authorities to find out the culprits behind the hack.CBP utilizes cameras for monitoring land borders and airports for crossings. This aids a facial recognition system that can track people passing through the United States and those who exit.

The subcontractor was found to have stored these images at its data centers without consent from authorities. CBP’s systems weren’t affected due to the hack. The stolen images were of those in vehicles, leaving and entering the country through a single entry point at the border. The entry point was not named by the CBP.

Travel document data or passport data wasn’t compromised at all. No identifying data was stolen. Tech website Register had reported images of car license plates of those automobiles passing through checkpoints were compromised on dark web forums.

The breach was discovered at May-end. No data that had been stolen was available on the Internet or dark web, it said.US agencies support facial recognition software to aid border security police and enable it to arrest criminals. However, there is an increasing risk of privacy concerns and identity theft that is possible via these systems, if they’re compromised.

Senator Wyden stated that if the US government was storing and collecting data about American citizens, then it had a duty to protect and secure the content. It didn’t matter that security was to be handled by private contractors. People whose data was compromised ought to be informed, he said. The government had to give assurance that satisfactory systems were in place to prevent future breaches.

Neema Guliani of ACLU stated that CBP was intending to expand surveillance activities and enhance data collection measures. This recent news was all the more reason for it to stop and be investigated by Congress.