HopSkipDrive data breach: what happened and what to do
Reviewed by Anthon Wansland
Head of Product & Co-Founder
Serus is a privacy company with paid tools to find and remove your personal data. This page is free and based on official sources.
In a breach between 31 May and 10 June 2023, data on about 155,000 people who drive or applied to drive for HopSkipDrive was copied. The company's filing lists names and driver's license or ID numbers. It reported the breach in early 2024.
View all 13,118 breaches- Breach date
- 31 May 2023
- Made public
- 2 Feb 2024
- Affected
- 155,394
- Data exposed
- Names, Driver's licenses
- Last updated
What happened
HopSkipDrive is a ride service that books trips for children and families, using vetted drivers. In February 2024 it told regulators that an attacker had broken into its systems and copied driver data.
According to the company's notice, a forensic investigation placed the incident between 31 May and 10 June 2023. HopSkipDrive found it on 12 June 2023. On or about 25 July 2023 it received an email from an unknown person claiming to hold the data. The company said the people affected were those who drive on its platform or applied to drive, and that no employee or customer data was accessed.
The filing with the Maine Attorney General puts the total at 155,394 people. It lists names together with driver's license or non-driver ID numbers as the exposed data. HopSkipDrive offered 12 months of credit monitoring and identity theft protection through TransUnion.
What this exposure means for you
A driver's license number together with a full name is the kind of detail used to open accounts, file false claims or pass identity checks. Neither is easy to change. That makes this a reason to lock down your credit files rather than just swap a password.
The company says customers were not part of the incident, so parents and riders have no reason to think their details were taken. If you drove for HopSkipDrive or applied to, read the letter you were sent and use the monitoring offer if you haven't.
Sources checked: maine.gov, techcrunch.com, oag.ca.gov
Last verified against the official page:
What to do if you were in it
- 1
Read your notice and claim the credit monitoring
If you drove for or applied to HopSkipDrive, the letter explains how to enroll in the 12 months of monitoring through TransUnion.
- 2
Freeze your credit at all three bureaus
A freeze at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion is free and stops new accounts being opened with your name and ID details. You can lift it when you need credit.
- 3
Watch your statements and credit reports
Check your reports at AnnualCreditReport.com and look for accounts or inquiries you don't recognize.
- 4
Ignore messages that demand ID or money
Someone who holds your name and license number can sound credible. Don't give out more details to anyone who contacts you unprompted about this breach.
- 5
Check whether your email or phone is in this and other breaches
Run a free scan at Serus to see where else your email or phone has been exposed.
Official filings
- California Attorney General , filed 2 Feb 2024
- Washington Attorney General , filed 27 Jul 2023 : 14,757 people
Timeline
-
The breach happened
-
Reported to the Washington Attorney General
-
The company made it public
-
Reported to the California Attorney General
Frequently asked
Was I affected by the HopSkipDrive breach?
Only if you drove on the HopSkipDrive platform or applied to drive. The company says no employee or customer data was accessed, and it notified affected people by letter.
What was exposed?
The company's filing with the Maine Attorney General lists names and driver's license or non-driver ID numbers.
How many people were affected?
HopSkipDrive's filing puts the total at 155,394 people.
Should I change my password?
The filing doesn't list passwords. Changing your HopSkipDrive password and turning on two-factor login is still a cheap precaution, but a credit freeze matters more here.
Sources
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us and we'll re-check it.