Personal Information Could Be Compromised After Cyberattack On Tulsa Parking App

Personal information of hundreds, if not thousands, of Oklahomans could be compromised after a cyberattack on an app used to pay for parking.

The City of Tulsa uses the ParkMobile app, which was hacked a few months ago.

Julie Prox is like many Oklahomans who could be the victim of a most recent cyberattack.

"I’m kind of not very happy about it. I’ve been receiving all kinds of solicitation phone calls lately," Prox told News on 6. "Today alone, I’ve received six since I woke up this morning, or seven."

Prox has used the ParkMobile app for two years. In March, the company was hacked due to a vulnerability with one of its third-party software vendors.

Prox said she didn't know about the hack. 

"I would’ve like to be informed if that happened because I had no idea and that’s kind of upsetting," Prox said. 

ParkMobile said customers’ credit card information is still safe. However, it said the attack did affect people's information like license plate numbers, email addresses, phone numbers, mailing addresses, and vehicle nicknames.

"Tulsans should care because some people who are victims of the ParkMobile hack now have their data being sold on the dark web for potential nefarious uses," said GableGotwals cyber security lawyer, Trent Shores.

Shores was also the former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma, and a former national security cyber specialist. Shores said these types of hacks are common and are hard to prevent, but customers and companies can take precautions.

"When you use a third-party vendor, you need to vet them. When you’re provided with security data or security patch, you need to download that and install that immediately. That’s common sense! You lock your door when you leave your house, you set your alarm maybe? Those are things you need to do with your data as well," Shores said. 

The City of Tulsa said the ParkMobile hack is not related to the city's ransomware attack. News on 6 contacted ParkMobile for an update about the hack, but has not heard back. 

"The City of Tulsa says there are 22,031 ParkMobile users with Tulsa zip codes in the system."

As an added precaution, ParkMobile says users can change their password in the “Settings” section of the ParkMobile app or on the web by clicking this link. They recommend always using unique passwords for different online accounts. Click here for step-by-step instructions on how to change user passwords.