The group posted a screenshot of what looked like a record from DAVID, Florida’s Driver and Vehicle Information Database. That was ShinyHunters’ proof it had broken into the state’s motor-vehicle systems, and it came with a deadline: September 11.
The extortion crew listed the “State of Florida DMV” on its leak site on September 7 and issued a “final warning,” demanding contact before the cutoff. CyberInsider, which first reported the claim, could not verify the screenshot or whether the data came from a direct compromise of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV).
What the hackers say
ShinyHunters told CyberInsider it got in through a password-reset exploit, then took over accounts tied to FBI personnel who have access to the state portal. It also said the agency had not negotiated with it. Under the hood, that is a claim about account takeover rather than a novel flaw, and it remained only a claim.
DAVID is a restricted database for law enforcement and other authorised organisations. It can hold licence applications, photographs, signatures, addresses, vehicle histories and insurance details. The group said this Florida attempt is separate from the IDScan.net exposure involving about 153 million purported licence scans, a dataset it had earlier tried to buy from Nexus.
Florida’s account
Later reporting from Fox News changed the picture. FLHSMV confirmed a breach, saying it learned of it on September 4, mitigated it quickly and had seen no further unauthorised access. It told the Florida Office of the Attorney General, and is working with the Florida Digital Service and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. The criminal investigation continues.
The agency’s explanation differs from the hackers’. It traced the breach to credentials belonging to a single Plant City Police Department user, improperly stored on a personal electronic device, which a criminal actor then exploited. It did not endorse the password-reset story.
ShinyHunters claims it stole more than 200,000 driver records. BleepingComputer reported the group offered a DAVID screenshot of Jeffrey Epstein’s record as evidence, apparently showing an address, Social Security number, birth date and vehicle details. Florida has confirmed neither the record count nor what was taken. In its statement, FLHSMV called the attacker only an “international cybercriminal organization” and did not name ShinyHunters.
BleepingComputer also cited a source saying the attackers were going after DMV platforms in other states through social engineering, and ShinyHunters said it expected more such breaches to surface.
Sources
- ShinyHunters claims breach of Florida DMV, threatens data leak
- DMV breach confirmed as hackers claim 200,000 records stolen
