Marines Sue Pentagon Over Data Breach and Exposed Records

Two Marines have filed a class-action lawsuit against the Pentagon over a data breach at the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC), alleging the department failed to address cybersecurity flaws that allowed scammers to access their personal information. The complaint, lodged in a federal court in Washington DC, names Marine veteran Tristyn Edwards and active-duty Marine Morgan Stampfli, who report fraudulent charges on financial accounts and an uptick in spam messages linked to the breach.

According to the lawsuit, the DMDC disclosed in September that a vulnerability identified on 16 July in a file‑sharing system enabled unauthorized access to unencrypted files containing personal data, including full names, Social Security numbers, birth dates and military occupations. The plaintiffs claim that millions of records relating to service members and others affiliated with the military were exposed for around nine months before the issue was discovered. The case draws on reporting from Military Times detailing the breach and subsequent information disclosures.

The article notes the plaintiffs’ allegations that the breach resulted from ignored cybersecurity flaws and connects the described vulnerability to the broader incident described by Military Times and other outlets. The claims are framed as a formal civil action seeking redress for the alleged damage to the plaintiffs’ financial and personal security resulting from the prolonged exposure of PII.

The report references that a vulnerability was identified and subsequently disclosed by the DMDC, with contemporaneous reporting confirming the scope and duration of the exposure.