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Dear Colleague:

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) learned on May 3 that an external hard drive containing personnel data (including name, Social Security number, date of birth, payroll information, financial allotments, and bank account and routing information) was discovered missing from a controlled area at the Headquarters Office of Human Capital. It is unclear at this stage whether the device is still within Headquarters or was stolen. TSA immediately reported the incident to senior DHS and law enforcement officials and launched an investigation.

We are notifying you of this incident because you may be one of the employees whose information was contained on the device. TSA has no evidence that an unauthorized individual is using your personal information, but we bring this incident to your attention so that you can be alert to signs of any possible misuse of your identity. We are notifying you out of an abundance of caution at this early stage of the investigation given the significance of the information contained on the device. We apologize that your information may be subject to unauthorized access, and I deeply regret this incident.

As a result of this, TSA will provide you with identity theft protection and monitoring for one year free of charge, as necessary. Credit monitoring services will include monitoring of all three national credit bureau reports, fraud alerts, detection of fraudulent activity and identify theft, and fraud resolution and assistance. Additional details on this free identity theft monitoring and protection will be provided shortly.

Here are some additional steps that you should consider to reduce the possibility of misuse of your information:

First, you should contact the financial institutions to which TSA electronically transfers your salary and other financial allotments to alert them that your account and routing information may have been compromised. Ask to be notified of any unusual activity.

Second, in addition to the identity theft service that TSA will be providing, you may want to consider immediately placing a fraud alert on your credit file to let creditors know to contact you before opening a new account in your name. Call any one of the three credit reporting agencies at the phone numbers listed below: (1) request that a fraud alert be placed on your account; and (2) order a free credit report from the agency. We recommend that you request a free credit report from each agency with four month interval between requests to each agency (i.e., a request to one agency, wait four months, then submit a request to the next agency, etc.). By spacing the requests, you can monitor your credit over time.

• Equifax, 1-800-525-6285
• Experian, 1-888-397-3742
• Trans Union, 1-800-680-7289

Third, when you receive your credit reports, review them carefully for accounts you did not open or for inquiries from creditors that you did not initiate. Also, review your personal information for accuracy. If you see anything you do not understand, call the credit agency at the telephone number on the report.

Fourth, if you find any suspicious activity on your credit reports, file a report with your local police.

Additional information about identify theft can be obtained from the Federal Trade Commission's Web site: www.ftc.gov/idtheft. TSA's Web site, www.tsa.gov, also contains useful information on dealing with identity theft. Please note that TSA will NOT contact you to confirm any of your personally identifiable information, so if you are contacted by anyone purporting to act for TSA asking for your information, do not provide it.

TSA is committed to maintaining the privacy of employee information and takes many precautions for the security of personal information. In response to incidents like this one and the increasing number of data breaches in the public and private sectors, the agency is continually monitoring its systems and practices to enhance the security of personal and sensitive information. We profoundly apologize for any inconvenience and concern that this incident has caused you.

Sincerely,

Kip Hawley
Administrator