Hunting and Fishing Licenses Sale Suspended Due To Security Breach

The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WFDW) announced yesterday that fishing and hunting licenses sales are suspended due to a cyber security breach. WFDW is working with the Office of Cyber Security in investigating an outside vendor's license sale system.

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The temporary suspension is due to the access of some personal information of people who have applied for fishing and hunting licenses. The investigation includes several states whose systems were compromised. 

Preliminary investigation reveal Active Network, a data, payment and event management and  WFDW vendor, announced yesterday that fishing and hunting licenses sales are suspended due to a cyber security breach. WFDW is working with the Office of Cyber Security in investigating Active Network's license sale system.  Washington Post reports that personal information including names, address, date of birth, and last four digits of Social Security numbers were part of the hack. WFDW is offering "free fishing" while the system is down. License to fish or gather shellfish is not required from August 25, 2016 thru August 30, 2016. Furthermore, catch record cards for salmon, sturgeon, and crab are not required. Online license sales will resume after the system is secured.

For more information, please see WFDW's news release dated August 25, 2016.

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