Biggs Urges Investigation into Massive Data Breach

In August, a grave incident unfolded as hackers managed to steal the personal information of nearly 3 billion people, a breach that could have potentially impacted the entire United States. In response, Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ) swiftly penned a letter to the Biden-Harris Administration, underlining the urgent need for an investigation into the breach and immediate measures to rectify it.

The Los Angeles Times reported the breach in mid-August. Personal data obtained in the hack included full names, Social Security numbers, phone numbers, addresses, and dates of birth.

In addition to demanding answers about how the breach was able to happen and how the hackers will be caught and held accountable, Rep. Biggs demanded answers about how the continued government investment in data broker systems helped enable the hack, urging the Biden-Harris Administration's support for legislation cutting back on warrantless searches and surveillance of American citizens.

"This breach represents a monumental failure in cybersecurity and an egregious oversight by the Biden administration. The sheer magnitude of this incident is a wake-up call for immediate and decisive action. The American people's preexisting distrust in the federal government's ability to protect private information is all the more justified after every data breach. We demand to know how personal information was so recklessly exposed and what steps will be taken to prevent such breaches in the future. We look forward to a swift response from the administration and to working toward bipartisan solutions to protect Americans' personal data," said Rep. Biggs in his press release.

Representative Warren Davidson (R-OH), who co-wrote the letter, added, "By allowing the government to purchase Americans' sensitive data from hackers, the Biden-Harris administration is once again failing to protect Americans' right to privacy. Worse, this impermissible action by this administration creates a market for illicit data hackers. Not only must this practice end, but the Senate must pass the Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act to stop abusing the right to privacy."

The Fourth Amendment is Not For Sale Act was passed in April and has been sitting in the Senate ever since.