Florida motor vehicle agency says driver records may have been accessed in Sept. 4 breach

The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles said in a public notice sent at 5:23 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026, that it will mail letters that week to current driver license and identification card holders whose information may have been exposed in a breach of department records.¹

According to the notice, a “malicious actor” got into certain department records on Sept. 4, 2026, using compromised credentials. The department said it moved right away to contain the activity and secure its systems.¹

What may have been exposed

The department said its investigation, carried out with the Florida Digital Service and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, found that the records potentially involved hold driver license and motor vehicle data, such as document images, as well as other personal details.¹ “At this time, FLHSMV has no evidence indicating that information has been misused,” the notice says.¹

The notice does not say how many people’s records were reached. The News Service of Florida, in a story published by WFSU, reported that the department did not give a count of records accessed.²

Who is being notified

Letters are going to current license and ID card holders who may be affected, the department said. Because it may not have current mailing addresses for everyone, the department said it was also giving substitute notice under Section 501.171 of the Florida Statutes, the state’s data breach law, to reach former license or ID card holders and people who once titled a vehicle in Florida.¹ Among other conditions, that law allows substitute notice when an agency lacks mailing or email addresses for the people involved; it calls for a conspicuous posting on the agency’s website and notice to print and broadcast media.³

People who held a Florida license, ID card or vehicle title in the past and did not get a letter can write to customerinquiry@flhsmv.gov, according to the notice.¹

The offer of monitoring

The department said it is offering free identity and credit monitoring and $1 million in identity theft insurance for one year through Sontiq Inc., which the notice describes as a TransUnion company.¹ WKMG News 6 and Patch also reported the offer through Sontiq.⁴⁵

The notice suggests that people review account statements and credit reports, watch their financial and online accounts, and consider placing a fraud alert or security freeze with the major credit bureaus. It lists AnnualCreditReport.com and 1-877-322-8228 for free credit reports, and phone numbers for Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.¹

What the records do not show

• The notice does not say how many current or former license holders, ID card holders or vehicle owners may be affected.
• It does not say whose credentials were used, how they were obtained, how long the access lasted, or when the department learned of it.
• It does not list which data fields, beyond the categories named, were in the records reached.
• It does not give a deadline to enroll in the monitoring offer.
• SignalData could not open the department’s own data breach page (flhsmv.gov/data-breach), which the notice links for frequently asked questions; this story relies on the notice as the department distributed it by email bulletin.
• News outlets have reported different contact email addresses; the address above is the one in the department’s Oct. 16 notice.