Data Breach Compromised Info of 1M-Plus Who Sought Benefits
upstart writes in with an IRC submission for c0lo:
Data breach compromised info of 1M-plus who sought benefits:
A Washington agency examining how the state fell victim to massive unemployment fraud last year said Monday that files on 1.6 million claims that it obtained for its investigation have been exposed by a data breach - meaning people who already lost work due the pandemic might have to add identity theft to their difficulties.
The breach involved a third-party software vendor, Accellion, which the state Auditor's Office uses to transmit files. The auditor has been looking into how Washington's Employment Security Department lost hundreds of millions of dollars to fraudsters, including a Nigerian crime ring, who rushed to cash in on sweetened pandemic-related benefits by filing fake unemployment claims in the names of real state residents.
I know this is one more worry for Washingtonians who have already faced unemployment in a year scarred by both job loss and a pandemic," Auditor Pat McCarthy said in a news release. I am sorry to share this news and add to their burdens."
[...] Those potentially affected include people who filed for unemployment benefits between Jan. 1 and Dec. 10, 2020. That includes many state workers as well as people who had fake unemployment claims submitted on their behalf.
[...] Other Accellion customers were also affected, including Australia's securities regulator and New Zealand's central bank.
McCarthy said the state learned of the attack Jan. 12, after Accellion made a general announcement regarding a security breach, but Accellion said it notified customers Dec. 23. It wasn't until last week that the Auditor's Office learned what files might have been accessed, McCarthy said.
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