OPM: Frequently Asked Questions on Cybersecurity

Updated June 27, 2015

What information was compromised in the intrusion involving personnel records?

OPM maintains personnel records for the Federal workforce. The kind of data that may have been compromised includes your name, Social Security number, date and place of birth, and current and former addresses. It could include the type of information you would typically find in a personnel file, such as job assignments, training records, and benefit selection decisions.

Were postal worker records affected?

It’s possible that Postal employees were affected. They may be affected if they fit certain conditions.

If the Postal employees worked for a Federal agency or organization that submitted service history documentation to OPM for future retirement processing, they may have been affected. There are several reasons that these records may have been submitted. They include:

• When an individual moves from one agency or organization to another.
• When an individual separates from an organization.
• When an individual retires from an organization.
• When an organization has a change in payroll service center.

Any Postal employees that were affected will be notified either by email or by mail.

If you are unsure whether your organization submits related documentation to OPM to support future retirement processing, please contact your organization’s Human Resources Office.

I received the letter for credit protection, but what if I already have paid credit protection? Will you cover me in the event something happens even though I am not with the credit service you suggested?

In the case of the personnel records intrusion, every affected individual, regardless of whether or not they explicitly take action to enroll, will have identity theft insurance and access to identity restoration through CSID. Affected individuals who want credit monitoring from CSID have to enroll for that service after they receive their notification.

In the case of the incident involving background investigations information, OPM and its agency partners are still investigating and will notify individuals if their data was affected as soon as is practicable.

Can employees contact CSID anytime, or do employees need to wait for the notification containing the access code before contacting CSID?

We encourage employees to wait until they get notifications before calling CSID to allow for others who need technical assistance to get through. Notifications were all sent by June 19 but they may take several days to arrive.

If you believe you should have received a notification, CSID can verify whether you are eligible to enroll. Current and former Federal employees can contact CSID between the hours of 7 a.m. CST and 10 p.m. CST, Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. CST on Saturday, by calling CSID’s call center at 844-777-2743 (International callers: call collect at 512-327-0705).

 Source: Frequently Asked Questions

• OPM Update on the Cyberintrusion Investigation