CLEARFIELD – A recent cyberattack on Clearfield County Government may have impacted the security of personal information.
On Tuesday, Commissioners John A. Sobel, chairman, Tony Scotto and Dave Glass released information to local news media.
“… A recent cyber event may have impacted the security of personal information relating to certain individuals associated with the county,” the commissioners said.
“The county has sent written notification letters regarding the incident to these individuals. [This] will include steps they may take to help protect their personal information, should they feel it is appropriate to do so.”
On Jan. 9, the county learned that it was the target of a cybercriminal attack and that its computer network was infected with ransomware.
The county immediately launched an investigation into the nature and scope of the incident and hired outside legal counsel who then engaged forensic investigators to further analyze this event.
Based upon the county’s current investigation, an unauthorized party obtained access to county servers in late October of 2020.
On Jan. 25, the county received confirmation that the cybercriminals had accessed certain files that were stored within the county’s computer environment and contained personal information.
On Feb. 12, the forensic investigation confirmed that some of the personal information stored on the county’s network was made available on the cybercriminal’s Web site.
The incident required the county to conduct a thorough and lengthy review of the potentially-impacted data in order to determine who and what information was involved. Based on the investigation, the impacted data included name, date of birth, address and Social Security number.
The county encourages potentially impacted individuals to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud, to review account statements and monitor credit reports for suspicious activity.
All individuals receiving notification will be offered one year of credit monitoring services, at no charge.
In addition to launching an internal investigation into this incident, the county is reviewing its existing policies and procedures, and will implement additional safeguards to protect data, as needed.
The commissioners also stated: “The security of information in our care is among Clearfield County’s highest priorities.
“We are committed to protecting our residents’ information against ever-evolving and pervasive cyber threats.
“We will continue to invest in the internal processes, tools and resources necessary to reduce the likelihood that this can happen again.”
