FBI probes potential data breach of millions of drivers’ licenses

WASHINGTON – The FBI is investigating the potential theft and sale of millions of drivers' licenses on the dark web.

Digital scans of more than 153 million drivers' licenses belonging to people in the United States and Canada were advertised on the site Nexus. News of the breach was first reported by the blog Krebs on Security, run by former Washington Post journalist Brian Krebs, a cybersecurity expert.

Krebs said he confirmed the authenticity of at least nine drivers’ licenses for sale on the site. Shortly after Krebs' Sept. 2 story published, he said the Nexus site disappeared from the dark web.

The FBI said in a statement it was "looking into the incident," but could not comment due to the ongoing investigation.

The source of the data breach remains unclear.

Krebs pointed to Louisiana-based ID-verification company idscan.net as a potential culprit. The company provides services for a number of large organizations, including Hertz, Target, FedEx and the United States Coast Guard, according to its website. A spokesperson for the company told Krebs they were investigating the issue.

USA TODAY has not been able to independently verify Krebs’ assertions and has reached out to idscan.net for comment.

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/