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Men overboard! US Navy spills data on 134k sailors

In the Navy, we sink thanks to HPE! In the Navy, we leak data with much ease!

The United States Navy has revealed that the names and social security numbers on 134,386 current and former employees has leaked, thanks to the compromise of a laptop used by a Hewlett Packard Enterprise Services staffer.

The IT contractor and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service probed the data loss finding that "unknown individuals" accessed the records.

The Navy says there is as yet no evidence the data was misused.

No information was released on the detail of the incident, so we're uncertain if the laptop was stolen, infected with malware or otherwise compromised.

"We are in the early stages of investigating and are working quickly to identify and take care of those affected by this breach," naval personnel chief Vice Admiral Robert Burke says.

"The Navy takes this incident extremely seriously - this is a matter of trust for our sailors."

The Navy will notify affected sailors in "coming weeks" over phone, email, and snail mail.

More information will be provided to sailors including possible free credit monitoring, should the breach lead to identity fraud and associated financial complications. ®

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