The Federal Trade Commission warned American service persons to be on guard against online scams in the wake of a recent data breach at the Department of Veterans Affairs in which personal information on up to 26.5 million veterans discharged since 1975 may have been exposed.
The FTC is advising veterans and their families to keep watch on credit accounts, bank account information, Social Security numbers, Internet passwords and other sensitive personal information. The warning specifically mentions the dangers of phishing scams, in which criminals use e-mail messages to lure recipients to a real-looking but bogus Web site, where their information is then harvested.
VA Secretary Jim Nicholson also said in a statement Sunday that personal data on up to 50,000 active duty personnel was among the information contained on a laptop stolen from the home of a VA data analyst on May 3. Nicholson said the names, birth dates and Social Security numbers of up to 20,000 National Guard and Reserve personnel were “potentially included” in the breach, along with the same information for 30,000 active-duty Navy personnel.
The FTC warning advised at-risk veterans never to give out personal information over the phone, through e-mail or on the Internet unless they initiated the contact; never to click on links contained within e-mails; and never to give Social Security numbers or other personal data to callers or e-mailers purporting to be associated with the Va or any other government agency.
