More than 3 million Texas hunting and fishing license customers may have had personal information exposed during a cybersecurity incident involving the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s license system vendor, according to TPWD.
Texas Cyber Command recently detected the incident involving the vendor that handles the sale of hunting and fishing licenses. An investigation found that an unauthorized actor may have obtained driver license information, passport numbers if provided, email addresses, phone numbers and residential addresses.
TPWD said Social Security numbers, dates of birth and financial information, including credit card details, were not obtained in the incident.
The agency also said there is no evidence that customers younger than 18 were involved or that any specific group was targeted.
What happened?
According to TPWD, the cybersecurity incident involved the agency’s license system vendor responsible for processing hunting and fishing license sales.
Investigators determined an unauthorized actor may have obtained certain customer information, including:
Driver license informationPassport numbers, if providedEmail addressesPhone numbersResidential addresses
TPWD said Social Security numbers, dates of birth and financial information, including credit card details, were not obtained.
The agency also said there is no evidence customers under the age of 18 were involved in the incident.
What is TPWD doing?
TPWD said it recognizes the seriousness of the incident and has already implemented additional security measures to better protect customer information.
The agency said it is working closely with the license system vendor to implement new safeguards and enhanced monitoring services. Immediate steps have been taken to strengthen access controls for customer profile data, and additional security features are planned.
TPWD also said hunting and fishing license sales will continue on schedule in August and for the next license year.
Affected customers are eligible to receive one year of free credit monitoring through Kroll. Customers can confirm their eligibility by contacting a dedicated call center at (844) 959-7123.
The deadline to enroll in the free credit monitoring service is Sept. 14, 2026.
What can customers do?
TPWD is encouraging customers to take steps to protect themselves from potential fraud or identity theft.
The agency recommends customers:
Review credit reports and financial statements for unauthorized activity.
Immediately notify financial institutions or credit bureaus if suspicious activity is discovered.
Freeze credit with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion to make it more difficult for identity thieves to open new accounts.
Place a free, one-year fraud alert through any of the three major credit bureaus.
Remain alert for scams or phishing attempts that may use personal information to impersonate companies or government officials.
Avoid clicking links or sharing personal information unless the request can be verified as legitimate.
Customers with questions about the incident or the available credit monitoring services can call (844) 959-7123.
The call center is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. CT.