Texas Parks and Wildlife officials say the agency was the target of a cybersecurity breach in which hackers obtained driver’s license and passport numbers, contact information and residential addresses of more than 3 million hunting and fishing license holders.
A vendor handling the sale of hunting and fishing licenses was breached on June 18, according to a report filed with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office. Texas Cyber Command, a state agency, is investigating what is one of the largest data breaches reported in the state this year.
“We recognize the seriousness of this issue and have identified and implemented additional security options to better protect customer information,” Texas Parks and Wildlife officials said in a written statement. “Many of our staff are hunters and anglers and were affected by this incident. We are committed to continuing to work with the license system vendor to implement increased safeguards to prevent future incidents.”
Social Security numbers, dates of birth and financial information, including credit card data, were not compromised in the breach, officials said.
A representative of the Texas Parks and Wildlife could not be immediately reached for comment.
Officials with the agency said it will implement new security measures and enhancing monitoring services, and will continue license sales in August.
The agency is urging affected customers to contact the dedicated call center at 844-959-7123, as they would be eligible to receive one year of free credit monitoring through Kroll. The enrollment deadline for the service is Sept. 14.