Dive Brief:

• OPM hackers accessed about 5.6 million fingerprint records, some 4.5 million more than initially reported, Reuters reports.
• The additional stolen fingerprints were uncovered as officials from OPM and the Defense Department further analyzed data affected by the incident.
• OPM originally said only 1.1 million fingerprint records had been compromised.

Dive Insight:

OPM is downplaying the danger of the stolen fingerprint records, saying the ability to misuse the data is limited at this point.

"If, in the future, new means are developed to misuse the fingerprint data, the government will provide additional information to individuals whose fingerprints may have been stolen in this breach," OPM said.

The Defense Department and OPM are currently collaborating to begin mailing notifications to the people whose information was stolen, OPM said. But many say the move comes too late.

OPM estimated a total of 21.5 million people had their Social Security numbers and other sensitive information stolen in a widely publicized hacking incident earlier this year. No evidence has surfaced suggesting the stolen data has been abused at this point, but some think OPM and the federal government are not taking the incident and its implications for national security seriously enough.

Sen. Ben Sasse said the latest OPM announcement was further evidence that officials view the incident as “a PR crisis instead of a national security threat.”