House Republicans launch probe into massive National Public Data breach

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer on Thursday launched a probe into the major data breach of National Public Data. 

The company admitted that hackers likely stole millions of Social Security numbers from its database earlier this year, along with other personal information on millions of Americans, including addresses and phone numbers. 

The probe, conducted alongside the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation, is expected to include testimony from the company's leadership over its failure to notify people affected by the hack in a timely manner.  

Comer and the subcommittee chairwoman Nancy Mace announced the Congressional investigation in a letter to National Public Data President Salvatore Verini.

“It is reported that the personal information of nearly 3 billion people were compromised, with the stolen data including information such as Social Security numbers, phone numbers, email addresses, and mailing addresses," the lawmakers wrote. "If true, this data breach likely represents one of the largest cyberattacks ever in terms of impacted individuals.”

The committee requested a briefing on the incident, which is to take place no later than Aug. 30.

“National Public Data’s lack of transparency about the cyberattack is staggering in light of the alleged compromised information and potential harm to so many victims," the lawmakers wrote. "The Committee is investigating this matter to better understand the details surrounding the security incident, and its impacts. 

"To the extent known and understood, we expect the briefing to describe the timing and nature of the breach, including the manner in which it occurred, a description of the data exfiltrated, and actions being undertaken by National Public Data in response to the breach," the letter added.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.