Here are 5 tips for Louisiana drivers to protect their identity after the MOVEit attack

Makenzie Boucher, Shreveport Times
·3 min read

On June 15, the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles (OMV) announced that a major cyber-attack has affected a number of government entities and the OMV is a possible victim to the attack.

The data breach was on MOVEit which is an industry-leading third-party data transfer service used to send large files.

OMV believes that all Louisianans with a state-issued driver’s license, ID, or car registration have likely had their name, address, social security and other information exposed to the cyber attackers.

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The OMV is advising Louisiana ID holders to take these following steps:

Prevent Unauthorized New Account Openings

The OMV listed freezing your credit as an option. "Individuals can freeze and unfreeze their credit for free," said the OMV. It continued by saying this stops other from opening new accounts and borrowing money in your name.

According to the OMV, freezing your credit does not prevent the use of any existing credit cards or bank accounts. Freezing your credit may be done quickly online or by contacting the three major credit bureaus by phone:

Three major credit bureaus:

  1. Experian: 888-397-3742, www.experian.com/freeze

  2. Equifax: 800-685-1111, www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze/

  3. TransUnion: 888- 909-8872, www.transunion.com/credit-freeze

Change All Passwords

The OMV is also advising motorist to change all passwords.

"As an additional precaution, consider changing all passwords for online accounts (examples: banking, social media, and healthcare portals) in the event your personal data was used to access these accounts," said OMV.

To learn more about password protection visit www.CISA.gov.

Protect Your Tax Refund and Returns with the IRS

Create an “Identity Protection Pin.” According to the OMV, this pin will prevent someone else from filing returns or receiving your federal tax refund, request.

To sign-up go to the Internal Revenue Service at: https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-fraud-scams/get-an-identity-protection-pin or call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040.

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Check your Social Security Benefits

The OMV is advising all individuals who are eligible, applied for, and/or are receiving social security benefits (including disability), to register for a ssa.gov account at https://www.ssa.gov/myaccount/.

According to the OMV, this step will stop others from stealing your benefits.

If you suspect Social Security fraud, call the Office of Inspector General hotline at 800-269-0271, Social Security Administration at 800-772-1213 or file a complaint online at oig.ssa.gov.

Report Suspected Identity Theft

If you suspect any abnormal activity involving your data, including financial information, contact the Federal Trade Commission at 877-FTC-HELP or visit www.ReportFraud.FTC.gov immediately.

The OMV said in a press release, "the State of Louisiana will be issuing additional information in the coming days."

Makenzie Boucher is a reporter with the Shreveport Times. Contact her at mboucher@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: 5 tips for Louisiana drivers to protect their identity after MOVEit attack