LA County Department of Public Health hit by phishing attack Los Angeles Times

pThe personal information of more than 200000 people in Los Angeles County was potentially exposed after a hacker used a phishing email to steal the login credentials of 53 public health employees the county announced FridayppDetails that were possibly accessed in the February data breach include the first and last names dates of birth diagnoses prescription information medical record numbers health insurance information Social Security numbers and other financial information of Department of Public Health clients employees and other individuals ppAffected individuals may have been impacted differently and not all of the elements listed were present for each individual the agency said in a news release pp Technology and the Internet ppHackers claim to have stolen 70 million Social Security numbers from ATT days after massive TMobile breach Here are some tips to protect yourselfppAug 20 2021ppThe Department of Public Health will mail notices to those affected by the breach Anyone who wants to find out whether their information was exposed can also call 866 8984312 from 6 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday ppThe data breach happened Feb 19 or 20 when employees received a phishing email which tries to trick recipients into providing important information such as passwords and login credentials The employees clicked on a link in the body of the email thinking they were accessing a legitimate message according to the agency Additional details about the phishing email were not immediately available ppIt is not clear when officials became aware of the incursion A department spokesperson did not immediately provide answers to emailed questions FridayppIn response officials said they have disabled the impacted email accounts reset devices blocked websites that were identified as being part of the phishing campaign and quarantined all suspicious incoming emails pp Technology and the Internet ppIf youre a victim of identity thieves or a data hack you need to act quickly Heres what to do to protect yourselfppOct 26 2022ppThe county is offering free identity monitoring through Kroll a financial and risk advisory firm to those affected by the breach ppIndividuals whose medical records were potentially accessed by the hacker should review them with their doctor to ensure the content is accurate and hasnt been changed Officials say people should also review the explanation of benefits statement they receive from their insurance company to make sure they recognize all the services that have been billedppIndividuals can also request credit reports and review them for any inaccuracies ppExperts say the most effective way to block the potential use of your Social Security number is to put a freeze on your credit files which will prevent anyone from opening a new account with your information Its free to place one and you can lift it when you need to However you have to contact each of the three major credit bureaus individually which can be done online ppTimes deputy editor Jon Healey contributed to this reportppJune 18 2024ppJune 7 2024ppApril 26 2024ppFollow UsppHannah Fry covers breaking news for the Los Angeles Times She most recently covered Orange County for The Times and has written extensively about criminal trials housing politics and government In 2020 Fry was part of the team that was a Pulitzer finalist for its coverage of a boat fire that killed 34 people off the coast of Santa Barbara Fry came to The Times from the Daily Pilot where she covered coastal cities education and crime An Orange County native Fry started her career as an intern at the Orange County Registerpp Music pppp Music pppp California pppp California pppp Hollywood Inc pp California pp California pp Hollywood Inc pp California pppp California ppJune 24 2024pp California ppJune 24 2024pp California pppp California ppJune 24 2024ppSubscribe for unlimited accessSite MapppFollow UsppMORE FROM THE LA TIMES p