A database of information on 191 million voters that is exposed on online due to an error configured database.
According to a researcher Chris Vickery said that the database includes names, addresses, birth dates, party affiliations, phone numbers and emails of voters in all 50 U.S states and Washington.
Vickery found the information while look for data exposed on the Web to raise awareness about data leaks.
“I want our society to respect privacy more,” he said. “We need serious referendum on the way private data is handled.”
Vickery wasn’t sure about others who accessed the voter database, which took about a day to download.
And also was not able to identify who controls the database, he added. Now Vickery is working with U.S federal authorities to find a way to remove it from public access.
A representative with the FBI declined to comment on the matter.
Privacy advocates said Vickery’s findings were troubling.
“Privacy regulations are required so a person’s political information can be kept private and safe,” said Jeff Chester, executive director of the Washington-based Center for Digital Democracy.
The leak was first reported by CSO Online and Databreaches.net, computer and privacy news sites that Vickery said helped him attempt to locate the database’s owner.
