"Oklahoma Cops Say Rape Victims' Data May Have Been Leaked"

The Oklahoma City Police Department (OKCPD) has announced that personal data belonging to victims of sexual assault may have been exposed during a security incident at a DNA analysis laboratory.  The OKCPD said that a company the department previously used to perform forensic testing had been hacked.  DNA Solutions is a private DNA analysis laboratory whose testing facility is located at the University Research Park Campus in Oklahoma City.  The laboratory provides paternity and forensic testing in humans and sire confirmation, genotype registries, DNA banking, and animal forensic identification.  Master Sgt. Gary Knight stated that the OKCPD had contracted the company for two years to perform “Y-screening” (Y-chromosomal testing) to detect male DNA foreign to the victim of sexual assault.  DNA Solutions Inc. determined that an unauthorized third party accessed their network and may have compromised certain sensitive personal and health-related information from sexual assault kits sent to them for forensic testing.  DNA Solutions said it discovered the hack on November 18, 2021, and immediately blocked the hacker’s access to its network.  An investigation was launched to determine which files had been accessed by the attacker.  The company said that while some sensitive personal and health information was compromised, the attacker did not access any personally identifiable information or financial information.  The company stated that the data accessed by the adversaries did not include social security numbers, driver’s license information, or financial information.  

Infosecurity reports: "Oklahoma Cops Say Rape Victims' Data May Have Been Leaked"