Data Breach in Oklahoma Affects More than 400,000

A massive data breach in Oklahoma may have compromised personal information belonging to more than 430,000 people.  

The breach, which occurred between February 23rd and March 14th, affected a workforce database stored by America’s Job Link Alliance (AJLA). Multiple agencies in Oklahoma use this database in coordinating federal unemployment and workforce development programs.

According to the AJLA website, “Individual job seeker account information including names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers may have been accessed by an unauthorized user in the AJL systems of ten states.” 

Shelley Zumwalt, a spokesperson for the Oklahoma governor’s office, says anyone who has ever accessed the website “OKJobMatch.com” may be vulnerable.

This website has hundreds of thousands of users. 

The Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services reports that the system has been repaired and is safe to use. The FBI has been notified of the breach. 

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According to the Security Breach Notification Act, entities that maintain databases including names and other personal information “must be encrypted or redacted so that in the event of a breach, such information cannot be obtained and used by a third party.” 

If negligence is discovered, we believe AJLA should be fined and damages should be awarded to the individuals whose personal data was compromised.

Editor’s note: This loss and similar losses make it hopeless that America will be able to maintain any level of privacy. This data is not only used for criminal purposes it is also sold as valuable databases for legitimate and illegitimate marketing. We are bombarded by advertising that targets our most personal needs, its too much.  

And since marketing is huge part of our business, if we are uncomfortable, then you should be as well.

We need an all out effort to save our privacy, both from hackers, and from the government.