The Office of Personnel Management has begun sending notifications via U.S. Postal Service mail to federal workers and contractors affected in the data breaches at OPM systems reported earlier this year.
Acting OPM Director Beth Cobert wrote in a blog entry posted Thursday that each notice provides a personalized identification number that the recipient can use to enroll in identity restoration and theft insurance services.
The letter also describes other available services in the suite of credit monitoring and identity theft protection measures that Cobert encourages the affected individuals to enroll in.
She also noted that the government will provide these free services for at least three years.
According to Cobert, the notices specify if the recipients have had their fingerprint data stolen through the OPM breaches.
The agency continues to work with experts to review potential areas in which threat actors may misuse fingerprint data and to develop countermeasures for misuse.
