Worcester Co. Addresses Government Email Breach

Worcester County has discovered a breach of the county government email account which contained limited personal information belonging to about 3,000 government and board of education employee and retiree accounts.
Cybersecurity professionals discovered the breach while conducting a forensic investigation into a phishing incident that occurred between November 10th and November 20th, 2020.
Worcester County Government said Thursday that it has implemented significant security measures to protect everyone who has been impacted, but there is no forensic evidence that any information that was accessed has been misused.
Anyone whose information has been affected has been advised to be vigilant, review accounts for any fraudulent activity or statements, and to order a free credit report.

More information was provided by Worcester County Government:

On April 27, WCG issued letters to each person whose information may have been affected. Each letter specifies what personal information was impacted. Credit and debit account information was not impacted.
Incidents like this breach can occur at any time. However, there are steps that each of us can take to protect against the misuse of sensitive information.

 Remain vigilant. Review account statements for fraudulent or irregular activity.
 Order a free credit report. Federal law entitles you to one free credit report every
12 months from each of the three major nationwide credit reporting companies.
 Contact your financial institution. If you see a fraudulent charge on your payment
card, contact the financial institution that issued your card.
 Those who suspect that their personal information may have been compromised
may consider placing a one-year fraud alert and/or security freeze on your credit
file by visiting https://www.experian.com/fraud/center.html
 Report fraud. If you find suspicious activity on your credit reports or have reason
to believe your information is being misused, contact local law enforcement and
file a police report. Get a copy of the police report, as many creditors will want
the information it contains to absolve you of fraudulent debts.
Learn more about how to avoid fraud, scams, and bad business practices and what to do if
you are scammed by visiting the Federal Trade Commission at https://consumer.ftc.gov/.