Association Nationale des Premiers Secours
In January 2026, a data breach impacting the French non-profit Association Nationale des Premiers Secours (ANPS) was posted to a hacking forum . The breach exposed 5.6k unique email addresses along with names, dates of birth and places of birth. ANPS self-submitted the data to HIBP and advised the i...
Overview
In January 2026, the French non-profit Association Nationale des Premiers Secours (ANPS) suffered a data breach. The incident, which affected approximately 5,600 individuals, was traced back to a legacy computer system. While the organization has confirmed that sensitive health and financial data were not accessed, a significant amount of personal information was exposed on a hacking forum. ANPS has proactively reported this incident to the breach monitoring service Have I Been Pwned (HIBP).
What Was Exposed
The breach compromised several key pieces of personal information for affected users. The exposed data includes:
- Email Addresses: Your primary contact identifier.
- Names: Your full name.
- Dates of Birth: A critical piece of personal information.
- Places of Birth: Another sensitive personal identifier.
The organization has stated that passwords, health records, and financial information were not part of this breach.
Potential Impact
While passwords were not exposed, the combination of data that was leaked creates serious risks. Your email address and name can be used for targeted phishing attacks, where criminals impersonate ANPS or other trusted entities to trick you into revealing more sensitive information. More critically, your date and place of birth are permanent identifiers that are commonly used to verify your identity for services like banking, government portals, or other account recoveries. In the hands of criminals, this information can facilitate identity theft and fraud.
Recommendations
If you have ever been a member, donor, or had contact with ANPS, you should take the following steps immediately:
- Change Your ANPS Account Password: As a precaution, if you have an online account with ANPS, change its password immediately. Use a strong, unique password that you do not use anywhere else.
- Beware of Targeted Phishing: Be extremely cautious of any emails claiming to be from ANPS or related to this incident. Do not click on links or open attachments in unsolicited messages. Verify communications by contacting the organization directly through their official website.
- Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Activate MFA on your email account and any other important online accounts (like banking or social media). This adds a critical second layer of security beyond just a password.
- Monitor for Identity Fraud: Keep a close watch on your bank and credit card statements for any unauthorized activity. Consider placing a fraud alert with credit bureaus if you are concerned.
How to Check If You’re Affected
The simplest way to check if your data was compromised in this breach is to visit the Have I Been Pwned (HIBP) website. This free service allows you to securely check if your email address appears in known data breaches.
- Go to haveibeenpwned.com.
- Enter your email address in the search bar.
- Review the results. If your information was part of the ANPS breach, it will be listed there.
You can also view the specific breach notification on HIBP at:
https://haveibeenpwned.com/Breach/ANPS