On July 28, 2023, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, filed a notice of data breach with the Attorney General of Maine after confirming that a vulnerability in MOVEit, a file-transfer program used by Allegheny County, resulted in an unauthorized party being able to access confidential consumer information. In this notice, Allegheny County explains that the incident resulted in an unauthorized party being able to access consumers’ sensitive information, which includes their names and Social Security numbers. Upon completing its investigation, Allegheny County began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals whose information was affected by the recent data security incident.

If you received a data breach notification from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, it is essential you understand what is at risk and what you can do about it. A data breach lawyer can help you learn more about how to protect yourself from becoming a victim of fraud or identity theft as well as discuss your legal options following the MOVEit / Allegheny County data breach. For more information, please see our recent piece on the topic here.

What Caused the Data Breach Affecting Allegheny County Residents?

The Allegheny County data breach was only recently announced, and more information is expected in the near future. However, Allegheny County’s filing with the Attorney General of Maine provides some important information on what led up to the breach. According to this source, on June 1, 2023, Allegheny County became aware of a vulnerability within a file-transfer software called MOVEit. Allegheny County uses MOVEit to send and receive data, including confidential information.

In response, Allegheny County launched an investigation confirming that the files were accessible through the County’s MOVEit server. It was later determined that some of these files contained sensitive information belonging to certain residents.

After learning that sensitive consumer data was accessible to an unauthorized party, Allegheny County reviewed the compromised files to determine what information was leaked and which consumers were impacted. While the breached information varies depending on the individual, it may include your name and Social Security number.

On July 28, 2023, Allegheny County sent out data breach letters to anyone who was affected by the recent data security incident. In this letter, Allegheny County notes that the hackers responsible for the MOVEit breach claim to have deleted any stolen data from government organizations and specifically stated that data related to the Allegheny County breach was deleted. That said, in an abundance of caution, Allegheny County is providing notice to all affected parties.

More Information About Allegheny County

Allegheny County is a county located in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Allegheny County has approximately 1,250,578 residents, making it the second most-populous county in Pennsylvania after Philadelphia County. Pittsburgh is the largest city in Allegheny County.