DHS Breach: 40,000 Employee Records Leaked by Hacker Group

Approximately 40,000 Department of Homeland Security employees and contractors had their personal records exposed in a suspected data breach confirmed by multiple sources. The incident includes the names, titles, and work locations of roughly 10,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel and more than 20,000 U.S. Customs and Border Protection staff, including Border Patrol agents.

Sources familiar with the data described the event as a catastrophic security failure. The leaked files also contain phone numbers and email addresses for some of the affected individuals. Fox News independently verified that the records include the identities of several undercover ICE agents working across different regions of the United States.

An anti-fascist hacking group calling itself the Department of Peace claimed responsibility for the acquisition and release of the data. The group stated that DHS employees hold similar information on the public, making the release of staff records a reciprocal measure. The hackers said they hope the data will help limit further harm caused by the department.

The leak was distributed through the website Distributed Denial of Secrets, which announced the release on Wednesday. Emma Best, a co-founder of the site, said a new search tool allows the public to query the database. Best stated the tool is designed to replace anonymity with accountability for federal workers.

A DHS spokesperson told Fox News that the department is aware of the potential breach and is working to address the situation swiftly. The agency stated it takes all security threats against its officers seriously and will protect its personnel appropriately. The department promised to update the public once more information becomes available.

This incident follows a Pentagon personnel database breach reported in September. That breach exposed sensitive personal information, including Social Security numbers, for more than 2.76 million living military and civilian personnel and 294,000 deceased individuals. Unauthorized users accessed unencrypted files in that case between October 2025 and July 2026.