The Hop transit district data breach: customer data may be copied
Hill Country Transit District, The Hop, says customer data may have been copied after July 10 network activity; check for a mailed notice.
- Published
- Ecosystem
- Enterprise software
- Exploitation
- Not confirmed. The Hop says information may have been copied without authorization; no method or attacker has been named in the sources.
What happened
The Hill Country Transit District, commonly known as The Hop, said in a news release that a data breach may have affected some people’s privacy. According to the Killeen Daily Herald (kdhnews.com), the release said The Hop noticed “unusual activity” on its network on July 10. It then began an investigation and retained experts.
The release said that investigation found certain information may have been copied without authorization. The Hop then began a review of the data set to determine what sensitive or personal information was potentially affected and who it related to. Letters have been mailed to certain individuals whose data may have been affected, per the same report.
Spokesperson Nicole Crim told the Herald there have been no updates since the release. She said The Hop could not release how many people were affected or what specific information was obtained, and that the company followed the law by notifying affected individuals (kdhnews.com).
The same report notes that The Hop recently announced it will rebrand as The Ride on Jan. 1. The sources do not link this to the breach or to the letters.
The Temple Daily Telegram (tdtnews.com) carries the same headline and byline (Kevin Limiti, Herald) and the same opening paragraph. The rest of its article text was not readable in the material we received, so the details above are attributed to kdhnews.com. We found no point where the two outlets differ.
Not confirmed in the sources: the number of people affected, the types of data involved, the cause or method of the intrusion, who is responsible, and whether any data has been misused.
Am I affected?
The sources do not say who is affected. The Hop operates a microtransit service with Uber-style shared ride pickups across Milam, Bell, Coryell, Hamilton, Mills, Lampasas, San Saba, Llano and Mason counties, covering more than 9,000 square miles (kdhnews.com).
The only confirmed indicator is a mailed letter. Per kdhnews.com, letters have gone to certain individuals whose data may have been affected. Whether people without a letter are affected is not confirmed.
What to do now
- Check your mail for a notification letter from The Hop (Hill Country Transit District) and read it fully.
- If you received a letter, follow the steps it gives. The sources do not describe what the letter offers.
- If you have used The Hop and have not received a letter, contact the agency to ask whether your data was involved. Contact details are not in the sources, so use the agency’s official channels.
- Watch for further statements from The Hop. The spokesperson said there had been no updates since the original news release.