A data-analytics firm hired by the Republican National Committee last year to gather political information about US voters accidentally leaked the sensitive personal details of roughly 198 million citizens earlier this month. And it's now facing its first class-action lawsuit.
ADVERTISEMENT
GOP data firm that exposed millions of Americans' personal information is facing its first class-action lawsuit
A data-analytics that accidentally leaked the sensitive personal details of roughly 198 million citizens is facing its first class-action lawsuit.
null
The exposed information did not include highly sensitive information like Social Security numbers, and much of it was publicly available voter-registration data provided by state government officials, a company spokesman told Business Insider on Tuesday.
"Since this event has come to our attention, we have updated the access settings and put protocols in place to prevent further access," Deep Root said in a statement. "We take full responsibility for this situation."
Deep Root didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
ADVERTISEMENT
But the exposed database combined people's personal information and political inclinations — including proprietary information gathered via predictive modeling tools — to create a detailed profile of nearly 200 million Americans that would be a "gold mine" for anyone looking to target and manipulate voters, said Archie Agarwal, the founder of the cybersecurity firm ThreatModeler.
"This is the mother lode of all leaks," Agarwal said Monday. "Governments are made or broken on this. I don't even have the words to describe it."
JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!
ADVERTISEMENT
Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:
Email: eyewitness@pulse.ng
ADVERTISEMENT