SACRAMENTO, CA -(Ammoland.com)- Gun owners have long worried that firearms licensing schemes put their information at risk. On Monday, their fears came to fruition.
Earlier in the week, the California Department of Justice released the 2022 Firearms Dashboard Portal. According to the California AG Rob Bonta, the dashboard would;
“[i]mprove transparency and information sharing for firearms-related data and includes broad enhancements to the platform to help the public access data on firearms in California, including information about the issuance of Concealed Carry Weapons (CCW) permits and Gun Violence Restraining Orders (GVROs).”
When gun owners examined the site, they found that a web user could download all personal information about California gun owners with a click of a button. This information included the gun owners’ names, addresses, and even Californian’s birth dates.
Even more shocking was the database tagged law enforcement members and judges.
Over the past year, law enforcement has been targeted by radical left-wing hate mobs fueled by the rhetoric of left-wing politicians looking to score points with their base. The database that was downloaded listed the law enforcement officer’s home addresses. With political violence on the rise, the database put the law enforcement officer’s life at risk and the lives of their family members as well.
The database can also aid criminals in knowing who to target for robbery. One of the databases leaked was the California Assault Weapon Registry. Now the owners of these firearms are a bigger target of criminals that will wait until the homeowners leave to break in and steal their guns.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office claims that the data was an unfortunate mistake, leading to more questions.
The biggest question is why a database of personally identifiable information (PPI) was stored on an Internet-facing data share.
It is best practice not to keep this information on a share where it could be accessed via the Internet without first authenticating.
Before getting into journalism, this writer spent over 20 years working in the information technology world for the federal government and private companies. I have worked to mitigate breaches throughout most of my former career. Most data breaches are misconfiguration of servers or network devices, allowing a hacker to use that misconfiguration to gain unauthorized access. Another common tactic used by hackers is what is known as social engineering. This method can include phishing emails or impersonating an employee to gain access to a computer system. Neither of these methods caused this data breach.
If the California AG is to be believed, then the system architects are grossly incompetent or massively unqualified to design the system. The issue should have been caught before the site went live, leading some to believe the leak was intentional. In contrast, others do not attribute to malice what can be attributed to gross incompetence.
The system should have been set up to require the user to authenticate with two-factor authentication to access the system. Once logged in, only then would the user be able to navigate to the share through an encrypted session. That would stop most data breaches.
The AG’s office is investigating the leak and stated that they take all data leaks seriously. As of this writing, the site is offline with no timeline for it to return.
AmmoLand News tried contacting AG Bonta via cell phone for comment, but our calls were not returned.
Update: Below is a press release from California AG Rob Bonta
About John Crump
John is an NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.
The way I understand this FUBAR MANUFACTURED SITUATION IS:
NOT ONLY Gun OWNERS, CARRY PERMIT Individuals, Judges and Police are on this EXPOSED REGISTRY!
ALL those who EVEN APPLIED for a carry permit ARE INCLUDED ON THIS ILLEGALLY EXPOSED REGISTRATION LIST!!!!
LEAK? BREACH? HOG WASH! This PRIVATE REGISTRATION WAS SET UP TO BE PUBLISHED! AND —- PUBLISHED IT WAS! INTENTIONAL DISPERSMENT OF AMERICANS’ PRIVATE INFORMATION!
It WILL TAKE YEARS before the damage will be taken-care-of! The PERPETRATORS of this malfeasance MUST be held PERSONALLY and FINANCIALLY RESPONSIBLE!
penniless in the street would be good, he could go to sanfran and steel from sacks or nordstrum
“California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office claims that the data was an unfortunate mistake”
Uh huh, sure! Our Association sent out a flash alert to inform us about this ‘unfortunate mistake’!! My Association is unsure and have yet to confirm if Bonta’s ‘unfortunate mistake’ includes LEO’s! Obviously I’m concerned about MY safety with this leak along with my family’s! Thanks Ag Bonta! And WHERE do you live ??!!
What better way to inform burglars about who’s house to ransack looking for weapons? Of course not when the owner is home, that could end bad for the burglar. But the California Attorney General (Rob Bonta) must be thoughtless anti-gun sissy, who has no respect for the rule of laws that he doesn’t agree with. Little by little, bit by bit, that day will come when they will all get theirs.
I would normally express additional concern about LE data being included.
However, since, as a group, the Only Ones always manage to get carve outs from gun restrictions, they get to experience how ordinary citizens feel.
Lets see if this gets thru
A F’d up moderation algorithm is NOT how commies work. If commies ran ammoland & wanted you gone they ban you like Twitter does.
Everyone here gets caught in that algorithm from time to time.
Ooooh, lookie, the sissies are out downvoting!
It’s incredibly obvious, isn’t it? A foreign substance is introduced into our precious bodily fluids, without the knowledge of the individual, certainly without choice. That’s the way our hard-core Commie works.
They want your essence.
Deny them.
Yess, Jack, yessssss!
I can no longer sit back and allow Communist infiltration, Communist indoctrination, Communist subversion, and the international Communist conspiracy to sap and impurify our precious bodily fluids.
Mandrake, do you know what Clemenceau once said about war?
No, I don’t think I do, sir, no.
Have you ever seen a Commie drink a glass of water?
He said war was too important to be left to the generals. When he said that, 50 years ago, he might have been right. But today, war is too important to be left to politicians. They have neither the time, the training, nor the inclination for strategic thought.
Not sure about who said this, HOWEVER, I TOTALY AGREE!
AGREED!
Bonta like his predecessor Becerra are above the law. This blatant screw-up is hardly a mistake and now has jeopardized the unknown and unseen part of society who were a deterant until now.
see pic
No evidence, no argument, just an accusation.
ANMOLAND SUPPRESSED THE EVIDENCE. THATS MY POINT.
WHAT EVIDENCE? THAT’S MINE.
Look at all the little sissy socks who hate ammoland.
Ammoland KGB BANNED MY TEXT COMMENT.
WAKE UP MEN. AMMOLAND IS NOT A FREEDOM AND LIBERTY BLOG. IT IS TO MAKE MONEY FOR ITS OWNERS. THE TRUTH BE DAMMED. THEY BLOCKED MY TEXTUAL COMMENT AND A PICTURE OF IT. SO THEY ARE MOST CERTAINLY UNDER THE CONTROL OF COMMUNIST FORCES.
Ammoland banned my comment. Lets see if this works
For the record:
Robert Andres Bonta Age 50 (Sep 1971)
1819 San Jose Ave
Alameda, CA 94501
(510) 872-5141 – Wireless
(510) 521-2433 – Landline
(203) 865-7871 – Landline
COME ON MAN. This aint no accident, mistake, FUBAR, or clown show. This was well planned, designed, beta tested, and tested again. This is how Communists work. They have been doing this a long time. And getting away with it too. The Communist Biden Regime knew of this. The US VP is the Biden Regmes ambassador to Kalifornia. She plays the dumb blond routine but its all an act. Harris is a dangerous woman. The Kalifornia gun owners database is a model for the nation. American patriots are under attack. Their names, children, families, freedoms and property are on a… Read more »
An accident? How convenient for the government, criminals and the united nations that everyone who has purchased a firearm or ammo now has their personal information published for anyone to use. In the late 30’s, hitler registered firearms “for a kinder gentler nation” he then confiscated them and plunged the entire world into the bloodiest war known to man. What has happened here is not an accident, it’s part of the plan to disarm America so there can be no serious threat to the evil people who enslave us. That is and has always been the reason for weapon control,… Read more »
California now a lawless state L.A Hollywood actors call for the defunding of the LA sheriff’s office while the homeowners want no such thing. The rate is crime up 137% Democrats nothing but RATS. Soon very soon I hope that California runs out of water a miss managed system that they claim climate change is to blame. That is not so News Max ran a 2 hour special proving that the democrats are just making this up as they go along. Not one of the democrats predictions have proven true on climate change or gun laws. Yes the climate has… Read more »
this had to be with intent not an accident