News & Stories

September 2024

What To Do To Protect Yourself From The NPD Data Breach

On August 16, 2024, National Public Data (NPD) reported a major security breach. An estimated 2.9 billion records were stolen from NPD, a consumer data broker. Here’s what you need to know and what you can do.

Who is NPD and what data have been exposed

MNPD is a company that provides data for people conducting background checks.

An estimated 2.9 billion records may be affected, and they included names, mailing addresses, emails, phone numbers, and Social Security numbers.

How to check to see if you are affected

There are multiple websites that can show if you are affected. According to multiple media reports, one site — NPDBreach.com — allows for a search by full name and zip code, Social Security number or phone number. Another site — NPD.pentester.com — allows for search based on first name, last name, state and birth year.

What you can do

1. Check your credit report
   Check your credit score for any signs of fraud, for free at www.AnnualCreditReport.com.  Despite the name, you can now run a fresh score report weekly. Make sure you pull the credit report from each of the three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion).
2. Freeze your credit
   Credit Freeze will help block access to your records to all. This means you need to either temporarily or permanently unfreeze your credit when applying for new credit, such as credit cards and auto loans. Again, this needs to be done separately for each of the three credit agencies.
   If a freeze seems too much, you can place a free fraud alert on your credit file. It tells creditors to contact you before they open any new accounts or change your existing accounts.

Who to contact

Any questions regarding this breach can be directed to the email address.

Breach@NationalPublicData.com