Den Hartog Industries, a manufacturer based in Hospers, Iowa, has been named by a ransomware group that claims it attacked the company. The company has not publicly confirmed a new incident.
This page explains what has been reported, what has not, and what people connected to the company can do now.
Den Hartog Industries’s Data Breach Investigation
Den Hartog Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer in Hospers, Iowa that makes plastic and metal products, including tanks, marine products, and custom molded parts. A company of this kind holds records on current and former employees, applicants, and the business customers and vendors it deals with. That means the people who could be affected by any incident include workers and their family members, not only customers.
According to ransomware-tracking websites, a group known as INC Ransom listed Den Hartog Industries on its dark web leak site. Trackers record the listing as dated October 1, 2026. A leak-site listing is a claim made by the criminals themselves. It is usually meant to pressure a victim into paying, and it does not by itself prove that any files were taken. The listing we reviewed did not say what kind of data the group says it holds.
At the time this page was written, we could not find a notice posted by the company about a 2026 incident, a state attorney general filing for one, or a news report in which the company confirms it. Until the company or an official agency says more, the scope of any incident, the number of people affected, and the exact timeline remain unconfirmed. This page does not assume anything beyond what has been reported.
This is not the first time the company has disclosed a security incident. In a separate matter, Den Hartog told the Iowa Attorney General that it discovered on August 30, 2021 that some of its systems were encrypted. Its investigation found that files containing employee information had been accessed, and the potentially affected information included names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. The company reported sending notification letters to 5,315 Iowa residents on November 30, 2021, and it offered 12 months of credit and identity monitoring through IDX. That earlier incident is a different event from the 2026 listing and should not be treated as the same breach. We mention it only because it shows the kind of employee records the company has held.
Ransomware groups like INC Ransom often use what is called double extortion. They break into a network, copy files, lock the systems, and then threaten to publish the copied files unless a ransom is paid. Manufacturers are frequent targets because a work stoppage is costly and payroll and human resources files usually hold names, addresses, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. We have no information that any such records were taken from Den Hartog Industries in 2026, and we do not suggest that they were.
State laws generally require a company to notify affected people without unreasonable delay once it confirms that personal information was acquired, and many states also require notice to the attorney general when a threshold number of residents is affected. In practice, notice letters often arrive weeks or months after an attack, because the company first has to investigate with outside experts, work out which files were reached, and then identify the people in those files. If a letter comes, it is the most reliable way to learn whether your own information was involved, which items it covered, and what protection is being offered.
People connected to the company should also expect scams to follow a claimed attack. Criminals who say they hold data sometimes contact people directly, or imitate the company or a service provider, to ask for payment or personal details. Do not respond to a message that mentions this incident until you have checked it by contacting the company through a phone number you already trust. This page will be updated if the company or a regulator publishes confirmed details.
When Did This Breach Occur?
The company has not announced when any 2026 incident began or when it was discovered. Ransomware-tracking sites record the INC Ransom listing as dated October 1, 2026.
That date describes when the claim appeared online, not necessarily when the company was breached. If you receive a notice, look for the discovery date and the dates of unauthorized access in the letter itself.
What Information Was Breached?
The listing we reviewed did not say what information the group claims to have, and the company has not confirmed any data types for 2026. We found no official notice that lists the specific items involved.
For a manufacturer, records can include employee names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and payroll details. In the company’s earlier, separate 2021 incident, the information involved was reported as names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. Whether any of that applies to the 2026 claim is not known, so treat it as a question to check against your own letter, not as a fact.
What You Can Do
If you work or have worked for Den Hartog Industries, or you think you may be affected, consider these steps.
- Keep any letter you receive, with the envelope and any enrollment code, so you have a record of what you were told.
- If a notice offers free credit monitoring or identity protection, enroll before the deadline in the letter.
- Request your free credit reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion at annualcreditreport.com and look for accounts or inquiries you do not recognize.
- Consider placing a free fraud alert or a security freeze with each of the three credit bureaus.
- File your taxes early if you can, and consider an IRS Identity Protection PIN, since a stolen Social Security number can be used for false tax returns.
- Be careful with calls, texts, and emails that mention the company or this incident, and report suspected identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission at IdentityTheft.gov and to your state attorney general.
File a Data Breach Lawsuit Against Den Hartog Industries
People whose personal information is exposed in a data breach may have legal options if the organization failed to use reasonable safeguards. Whether a claim exists depends on the facts, including what information was involved, how the incident happened, and how the company responded.
If you received a notice connected to Den Hartog Industries, or you believe your information was involved, you can speak with a lawyer about whether you may be able to join a class action lawsuit to seek compensation for the exposure of your information, the time you spent responding, and any losses you suffered.
Contact us at Class Action U, where we’ll connect you with a lawyer skilled in class action lawsuits. If you’ve been contacted about this breach, received notice, or discovered you were impacted, fill out our quick, easy, and secure form to sign up. There is no cost to reach out to our legal partner and no obligation after speaking with someone from our team.
