Massive Data Breach Affects Over 100 Million Capital One Users

Capital One revealed Monday that personal information, including Social Security and bank account numbers, of more than 100 million customers was compromised in a massive data theft operation.

The FBI arrested Paige A. Thompson of Seattle, WA for stealing data from Capital One credit card applications in one of the top 10 largest data breaches ever, according to USA TODAY research. 

The bank said “the largest category of information” accessed from applicants who applied for credit cards between 2005 and 2019 was personal information including names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth and self-reported income. Capital One reported approximately 140,000 Social Security numbers and 80,000 bank account numbers were accessed from credit card customers.

Capital One said in a news release that “100 million individuals in the United States and approximately 6 million in Canada” were affected. A consumer website about the breach can be found at www.capitalone.com/facts2019.

According to USA Today, the breach was discovered July 19, and the company said it “immediately fixed the configuration vulnerability that this individual exploited and promptly began working with federal law enforcement.”

Capital One Chairman and CEO Richard D. Fairbank said in a statement, “While I am grateful that the perpetrator has been caught, I am deeply sorry for what has happened. I sincerely apologize for the understandable worry this incident must be causing those affected, and I am committed to making it right.”