Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) has reintroduced legislation to provide free lifetime identity theft protection to victims of the two data breaches that hit the Office of Personnel Management a few years ago.
The the Reducing the Effects of the Cyberattack on OPM Victims Emergency Response (RECOVER) Act was last introduced in 2018 and has been introduced one time prior to that as well. Norton reintroduced the bill (H.R. 3726) this past week in her ongoing effort to provide the lifetime benefits to victims of the data breaches.
“While in the minority, we got some identity protection for federal workers and contractors impacted by the data breach as a first step, but only lifetime identity protection will give these workers the peace of mind they deserve,” Norton said. “Because there is no limit to the duration on when the compromised personal information can be used, Congress must protect these federal employees in perpetuity.”
The current coverage being offered by the government to impacted individuals lasts through 2026.
The data breaches that occurred at OPM left the personal data of over 20 million current and former federal employees exposed, including fingerprints. Government officials have said that China was behind the cyberattacks that led to the data breaches.