Technologies

Hertz Data Breach Included Credit Card, Personal Data: Here’s What You Should Know

The car rental giant said a hacking incident involving a company it works with exposed its customers’ personal information.

The car-rental company Hertz is warning its customers that a data breach exposed personal information including driver’s licenses, credit-card data, contact information and in some cases social security or passport numbers.

The company said that hackers breached Cleo Communications, a company that it works with for file transfers.

The company said in a «Notice of Data Incident» statement (PDF) on its website: «We completed this data analysis on April 2, 2025, and concluded that the personal information involved in this event may include the following: name, contact information, date of birth, credit card information, driver’s license information and information related to workers’ compensation claims. A very small number of individuals may have had their Social Security or other government identification numbers, passport information, Medicare or Medicaid ID (associated with workers’ compensation claims), or injury-related information associated with vehicle accident claims impacted by the event.»

In an additional statement to CNET, a spokesperson for the company said Hertz takes privacy and security seriously.

«Importantly, to date, our forensic investigation has found no evidence that Hertz’s own network was affected by this event,» the spokesperson said. «However, among many other companies affected by this event, we have confirmed that Hertz data was acquired by an unauthorized third party that we understand exploited zero-day vulnerabilities within Cleo’s platform in October 2024 and December 2024.»

WK Kellogg (yes, the cereal company) was apparently affected as well by the same window of data vulnerability that Hertz says took place between October and December 2024. Hertz says it became aware of the breach on Feb. 10.

Hertz is offering its customers two years of identity-theft protection with Kroll and included a phone number to contact for information on the breach, 866-408-8964.

Another in a long list of breaches

Consumers have over the last few years had to deal with the fallout of multiple large-scale data breaches that have affected customers of companies including AT&T, Ticketmaster and others.

Franklin Orellana, a cybersecurity expert and program chair of data science at Post University, said that the Hertz breach may be different in the type of information that was collected.

«While the size of the Hertz breach may not be as large as some of the more recent ones, the nature of what was exposed makes it particularly concerning,» Orellana said. «That kind of sensitive data can be more far-reaching in its implications for consumers, especially in cases of identity theft or license-cloning fraud.»

Incidents like this, he said, are part of a rise in data breaches that affect third-party vendors of companies. Orellana pointed to a National Credit Union Administration report from a few years ago showing that 73 percent of data breaches involved a third party that was working with a credit union.

Sharing data with third parties can increase the possibilities of attack.

«These breaches are generally due to a lack of control or visibility in the security stance of these partners, and supply chain risk is, therefore, one of the most significant concerns in cybersecurity today,» he said.

As to what consumers can do about data vulnerabilities they aren’t directly responsible for, there aren’t many options for protection, he said.

«Unfortunately, in cases like these, consumers are largely powerless. You can do everything right, strong passwords, two-factor authentification, and up-to-date software, and still be vulnerable if a third party doesn’t store your data safely.»

Orellana added, «The burden truly is on businesses to vet vendors carefully and to have strong data protection policies across the entire ecosystem.»

Technologies

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for March 15, #1730

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle for March 15, No. 1,730.

Looking for the most recent Wordle answer? Click here for today’s Wordle hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Wordle puzzle is a fairly common word, but the beginning letter is one I rarely guess. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has no repeated letters.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

Today’s Wordle answer has two vowels.

Wordle hint No. 3: First letter

Today’s Wordle answer begins with G.

Wordle hint No. 4: Last letter

Today’s Wordle answer ends with E.

Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning

Today’s Wordle answer can refer to a mark that a student receives in a class.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is GRADE.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, March 14, No. 1729, was ANKLE.

Recent Wordle answers

March 10, No. 1725: SHOAL

March 11, No. 1726: TEDDY

March 12, No. 1727: SMELL

March 13, No. 1728: EATEN

What’s the best Wordle starting word?

Don’t be afraid to use our tip sheet ranking all the letters in the alphabet by frequency of uses. In short, you want starter words that lean heavy on E, A and R, and don’t contain Z, J and Q.

Some solid starter words to try:

ADIEU

TRAIN

STARE

NOISE

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for March 15, #538

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for March 15, No. 538.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today is Selection Sunday, and the Connections: Sports Edition puzzle is all about the NCAA basketball tournament. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Oops!

Green group hint: Not the second word.

Blue group hint: They direct the team.

Purple group hint: They made it to the Big Dance.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Basketball fouls.

Green group: First words in NCAA tournament rounds.

Blue group: Women’s college basketball coaches.

Purple group: Teams qualified for the 2026 Men’s NCAA tournament.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is basketball fouls. The four answers are block, charge, hold and reach-in.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is first words in NCAA tournament rounds. The four answers are elite, final, second and sweet.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is women’s college basketball coaches. The four answers are Auriemma, Close, Ivey and Staley.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is teams qualified for the 2026 Men’s NCAA tournament. The four answers are Gonzaga, High Point, Queens and Troy.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, March 15

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 15.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Today’s wasn’t terribly tough, but read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.