Oregon’s Largest Union Members at Risk for Identity Theft After Employee Laptop Was Stolen

One of Oregon’s largest unions is at risk for identity theft after a union employee’s laptop was stolen. This laptop is said to have the information of all Local 555 members, including names, addresses, birthdates and Social Security numbers.

The United Food and Commercial Workers Union, or UFCW, has notified those who may have been affected and recommends they sign up for credit monitoring services and watch their credit reports and other financial information for activity that was not initiated by them.

A fraud alert can stop any new financial activity before it happens putting you in control of new credit accounts. Union members should consider an identity theft protection service to place and renew these alerts automatically and have the additional benefit of identity theft insurance. Some companies will even monitor the black market internet to see if anyone is buying or selling your information such as your Social Security number.

As of today, no one has been arrested, nor has the laptop been recovered by police.

Accidental Attachment of Spreadsheet to Email Leaves Personal Information Available and Unprotected From Possible Identity Theft

A simple mistake made at a computer can cause a chain of events no one would want to be involved in.

The Office of the State Superintendent of Education, or OSSE, notified students of a security breach when a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet was accidently attached and emailed out to other applicants. The information was a compilation of those who applied for grants, and included names, home addresses, Social Security numbers and the birthdates of thousands of online applicants.

A letter was sent out to those who may have been affected, and credit monitoring services are being provided for those who would like to protect their personal information. It was an accident, and deeply regretted.

Medical Records from the University of California Berkeley Hacked and Accessed, Exposing Personal and Medical Information of over 160,000 Students

The University Health Services database at the University of California Berkeley was reported hacked somewhere between October of 2008 and April of 2009, and the organization is currently sending letters to all those affected.

Some 160,000 students’ information may be at risk for identity theft, and personal medical records may have been accessed along with Social Security numbers and medical records.

Students of both UC Berkeley AND Mills College are urged to monitor their credit and report any suspicious activity to the FBI. Students may also want to review identity theft protection companies that not only offer them financial protection but also protect them from medical identity theft. TrustedID is a great choice for this additional protection.

Stolen Laptop from North Carolina Ministry Leaves 1,000 Client’s Information at Risk

In North Carolina, the East Burke Christian Ministries was broken into early May and a laptop, among other things such as petty cash, was stolen.

Unfortunately, the laptop contained information of clients of the ministry, some 1,000 social security numbers at risk for identity theft.

Although police have yet to make an arrest or recover the laptop, the organization is sending letters to all of those who may have been affected and encourages those to monitor their credit reports for suspicious activity.

Hawaiian Community College Computers Hacked with Malware and Leave Over 15,000 at Risk for Identity Theft

It comes as no surprise that with the growing “internet age,” security of computers and networked data is at risk.

Kapiolani Community College, located in Honolulu, Hawaii, is the recent victim of an internet security breach after school staff found a computer infected with malware on their school computer network. On this network was not only the information of over 15,000 financial aid applicants, but this information was connected to a computer that did have names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers as well.

This possible data breach was brought to the attention of the Honolulu Police Department and the FBI, and the Kapiolani Community College is urging all of their students to monitor their credit reports best achieved with a credit monitoring service.

Atlanta’s Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections Fined For Unlawful Disposal of Sensitive Documents

Atlanta’s Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections is in deep water with the law after recklessly disposing of voter documents in the Atlanta Technical College construction dumpster.

30 boxes of documents were found, dating back to 2007. Over 100,000 people have personal information, such as names and social security numbers, at risk.

Due to this unlawful disposal of documents, the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections was ordered to pay over $120,000 in fees and penalties

Letters have been sent to those affected, and voters are strongly urged to consider identity theft protection and monitor their credit reports.

Credit Protection Recommended Due To LexisNexis Data Breach

New York-based company LexisNexis is an online information service that was recently involved in a possible data breach. They estimate that some 32,000 people had personal data that may have been accessed for fraudulent activity.

A letter was mailed to those who may have been affected, letting them know that their names, date of birth and social security numbers are at risk. They encouraged signing up for credit protection services to decrease the chances of identity theft.

Victims of credit card fraud have already been alerting the company, yet there have been no arrests. New York residents should review each identity protection company carefully as many insurance plans don not cover residents in New York.

Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency Exposes 250,000 Voucher Receipients

Oklahoma is going to be under speculation after numerous data breaches in security have occurred recently. A week ago, another laptop was stolen from an Oklahoma state employee’s home, one that contained almost a quarter million Section 8 housing voucher recipients. The information was password protected, but was not encrypted to keep the information from the wrong hands.

A letter was sent out by the agency to those who may be at risk. Even with the password protection, there is still concern that the data could be accessed and misused. It is highly recommended that those who feel they may have been affected sign up for credit protection services such as LifeLock, TrustedID and Debix.

Laptop Stolen from Oklahoma Department of Human Services

Oklahoma’s Department of Human Services has recently experienced a theft of one of their company laptops. Taken from an employee’s vehicle, this laptop contains information on some million recipients of service from this agency.

The information on the laptop was not encrypted but WAS password protected. There is always the risk of identity theft and misuse of personal data, especially when information such as Social Security Numbers are at risk.

Police of Oklahoma City and the Department of Human Services are investigating this incident, but caution those who may be affected to carefully monitor their credit reports.

Blackberry With Information on 3,000 Patients Stolen from Marian Medical Center

Credit monitoring services are just one of the steps that Marian Medical Center in California is offering recent patients of their Emergency Room and Urgent Care Center.

Recently a Blackberry phone, among other items, was stolen from a hospital employee. On this Blackberry, was a file containing sensitive personal data of recent patients. Over 3,000 recent patients’ have had their private information put at risk of identity theft.

Although the Blackberry’s service has been disconnected and there have been no signs of the information being accessed, the Marian Medical Center is taking no chances and is offering to assist those patients in monitoring their credit with a no-cost credit monitoring service.

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