Used Hertz? You might want to keep an eye on your credit

If you have ever rented a car from Hertz, you might want to check your credit reports and keep an eye out for any unusual activity. The car rental giant sent a notice to customers warning of a data breach that took place between October and December 2024. According to the notice, Hertz confirmed on February 10 that “data was acquired by an unauthorized third party.” Its analysis of the at-risk data concluded on April 2, 2025.

In other words, your personal data, including your name, contact information, date of birth, credit card information, driver’s license information, and even worker’s compensation claims could have been exposed. Further, “a very small number of individuals may have had their Social Security or other government identification numbers, passport information, Medicare or Medicaid ID” information leaked as well.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports that more than $12.5 billion was lost to fraud in 2024. Hertz is a national company with locations in all 50 states, so customers across the country are potentially at risk. The leaked information is potentially enough for a bad actor to steal the identity of those affected, so be wary of suspicious purchases or credit cards opened in your name.

That said, Hertz hasn’t received any reports of damages caused by the leak. “While Hertz is not aware of any misuse of personal information for fraudulent purposes in connection with the event, we encourage potentially impacted individuals, as a best practice, to remain vigilant to the possibility of fraud or errors by reviewing account statements and monitoring free credit reports for any unauthorized activity and reporting any such activity,” the company writes.

Protecting your personal data is difficult in today’s digital world, especially when exploits like the one used to target Hertz are difficult to detect in real time. While you can’t do much about your data once it’s in the hands of a company, you can protect yourself while browsing the web by using a VPN and applying smart safety practices.