Nationwide Insurance customers targeted by data breach
Nationwide Insurance has announced that it has fallen victim to a security breach from an intrepid hacker. According to the South Carolina Department of Insurance, the breached compromised the information of thousands of consumers and a significant amount of personal information was stolen from the Nationwide Insurance system. The agency suspects that the hacker stole social security numbers, drivers license numbers, and even dates of birth from consumers in South Carolina and Georgia.
Information of thousands of consumers stolen
The South Carolina Department of Insurance suggests that as many as 12,500 South Carolina consumers and 30,000 Georgia consumers have had their information stolen. Nationwide Insurance is currently in the process of contacting victims and informing them of the hack. Affected persons that have not receives information from Nationwide Insurance by November 30 are encouraged to contact the company directly. The insurer is also tasked with mitigating the damage that could be caused by the hack.
Nationwide Insurance institutes mitigation plan
Past of the mitigation plan set up by Nationwide Insurance has the insurer providing the South Carolina Department of Insurance with evidence of the data breach. The insurer has also set up a toll-free telephone number to allow affected customers to get in contact in an efficient manner. The insurer is also offering affected customers with free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services that will be provided by Equifax. This free protection will offer a year of coverage for victims of the data breach.
Data breach continues to be a problem for insurance industry
Data breach is quickly becoming a serious issue for the insurance industry. Hackers are finding new ways to bypass the security measures insurance companies have in place, putting the personal information of consumers at significant risk. Insurers are being pushed to take extreme measures to keep this information secure, but it can be difficult to mitigate the threat hackers present when they are constantly finding new ways to bypass security.
