Insight Global Informs Individuals of Data Incident

ATLANTA, April 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Insight Global announced today that some personal information, collected by our employees during COVID-19 contact tracing in Pennsylvania, may have been accessible to persons beyond authorized employees and public health officials. We deeply regret this happened and are committed to restoring the trust of any residents of Pennsylvania who may have been impacted. All necessary steps are being taken to secure any personal information, and we intend to learn and grow from this. We remain committed to continue helping slow the spread of COVID-19 in Pennsylvania.

Insight Global is contracted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to provide services for the Pennsylvania Department of Health to obtain information to help slow the spread of the virus and to identify and address any needs for specific social support services. At this time, we believe the impacted information consisted of names of individuals who may have been exposed to COVID-19, whether they were positive or negative for COVID-19, if they experienced symptoms, information about number of members in household, and for certain individuals, email and telephone numbers and information to address any needs for specific social support services. These individuals were contacted for purposes of contact tracing between September 2020 and April 21, 2021, although only a portion of individuals contacted during this period were affected. Insight Global did not collect Social Security numbers, financial account information, or payment card information, and that type of information was not involved in this incident.

Although Insight Global has robust security on its inhouse platforms, as part of an unauthorized collaboration channel, certain employees set up and used several Google accounts for sharing information. Documents related to contact-tracing collection were included among the information that may have been vulnerable to access.

Insight Global leadership became aware of this security vulnerability on April 21, 2021 and immediately took steps, completed by April 23, 2021, to secure and prevent any further access to or disclosure of information. To support this effort, leading third-party IT security specialists were engaged to help determine the nature and scope of the incident, and it is continuing those efforts to detect any unauthorized disclosure of this information. In addition, we worked with these specialists to identify documents that may have been vulnerable, as well as determine the nature of the information that may have been vulnerable. We have worked closely with the Pennsylvania Department of Health to identify any individuals whose information may have been affected. Individuals whose information may have been affected will also be notified by mail once address information is identified.

Although neither Insight Global nor the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are aware at this time of the misuse of the information involved, we understand the concern that this potential access to such information may raise. Insight Global is offering credit monitoring and identity protection services at no cost through TransUnion to those affected by this incident. A dedicated call center will open on Friday, April 30, 2021 at 1:00 pm Eastern time to help address questions about this incident. For further information or to learn more about the credit monitoring being offered, individuals may call toll free:  1-855-535-1787, Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 pm Eastern Time.

Additional details regarding how individuals can protect their information, should they feel it appropriate to do so, is included below.

Insight Global Contact:
Email: [email protected]

Steps You Can Take To Help Protect Your Information

Monitor Your Accounts

Under U.S. law, a consumer is entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. To order your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call, toll-free, 1-877-322-8228.  You may also directly contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below to request a free copy of your credit report.

Consumers have the right to place an initial or extended "fraud alert" on a credit file at no cost. An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer's credit file. Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer's credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer's identity before extending new credit. If you are a victim of identity theft, you are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years. Should you wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any one of the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below.

As an alternative to a fraud alert, consumers have the right to place a "credit freeze" on a credit report, which will prohibit a credit bureau from releasing information in the credit report without the consumer's express authorization. The credit freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent. However, you should be aware that using a credit freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in your credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit.  Pursuant to federal law, you cannot be charged to place or lift a credit freeze on your credit report. To request a security freeze, you will need to provide the following information:

1. Full name (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III, etc.);
2. Social Security number;
3. Date of birth;
4. Addresses for the prior two to five years;
5. Proof of current address, such as a current utility bill or telephone bill;
6. A legible photocopy of a government-issued identification card (state driver's license or ID card, military identification, etc.); and
7. A copy of either the police report, investigative report, or complaint to a law enforcement agency concerning identity theft if you are a victim of identity theft.

Should you wish to place a fraud alert or credit freeze, please contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below:

Additional Information

You may further educate yourself regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, credit freezes, and the steps you can take to protect your personal information by contacting the consumer reporting bureaus, the Federal Trade Commission, or your state Attorney General. The Federal Trade Commission may be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580; www.identitytheft.gov; 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); and TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. You can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. You have the right to file a police report if you ever experience identity theft or fraud. Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, you will likely need to provide some proof that you have been a victim. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and your state Attorney General. This notice has not been delayed by law enforcement.

SOURCE Insight Global