The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local # 5 (“IBEW”) recently reported a malware attack resulting in the sensitive information of certain members being compromised. On April 11, IBEW filed an official notice of the breach and began sending out data breach notification letters to all affected parties.

If you received a data breach notification, it is essential you understand what is at risk and what you can do about it. More about what you can do if your data was stolen is available in our prior blog post, "A Guide For Victims of a Data Breach”.

On average, victims of identity theft spend 200 hours and over $1,300 recovering their identity. Many victims also suffer emotional distress, incur credit damage, discover loans taken out in their name without their knowledge, and may even end up with a criminal record for crimes they did not commit. Taking immediate action is the best way to prevent the worst consequences of a data breach.

What We Know So Far About the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Data Breach

According to the April 11, 2022 data breach letter, on or around February 20, 2022, IBEW noticed suspicious activity on its computer network. In response, IBEW initiated an investigation into the incident, learning that its network had been infected with malware. The investigation also revealed that between December 29, 2021 and February 20, 2022, an unauthorized party had access to certain systems containing sensitive information.

Upon learning of the extent of the security breach, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers then reviewed the affected files to determine what information was compromised.

On April 11, 2022, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local #5 began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident.

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers is one of the largest labor unions in the United States. IBEW workers include those in the utilities, construction, telecommunications, broadcasting, manufacturing, and railroad industries, as well as some government employees. In total, IBEW has more than 750,000 members. IBEW #5 is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and serves the southwest portion of the state.

More About the Causes and Risks of Data Breaches

Often, data breaches are the result of a hacker gaining unauthorized access to an organization’s computer systems with the intention of obtaining sensitive consumer information. While no one can know the reason why a hacker targeted IBEW, it is common for hackers and other criminals to identify those companies believed to have weak data security systems or vulnerabilities in their networks.

Once a cybercriminal gains access to a computer network, they can then access and remove any data stored on the compromised servers. While in most cases an organization experiencing a data breach can identify which files were accessible, there may be no way for it to tell which files the hacker actually accessed or whether they removed any data.

While the fact that your information was compromised in a data breach does not necessarily mean it will be used for criminal purposes, being the victim of a data breach puts your sensitive data in the hands of an unauthorized person. As a result, you are at an increased risk of identity theft and other frauds, and criminal use of your information is a possibility that should not be ignored.

Given this reality, individuals who receive an International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers data breach notification should take the situation seriously and remain vigilant in checking for any signs of unauthorized activity. Businesses like IBEW are responsible for protecting the consumer data in their possession. If evidence emerges that IBEW failed to adequately protect your sensitive information, you may be eligible for financial compensation through a data breach lawsuit.

What Are Consumers’ Remedies in the Wake of the IBEW Data Breach?

When workers decided to join IBEW, they assumed that the organization would take their privacy concerns seriously. And it goes without saying that consumers would think twice before giving anyone access to their information if they knew it wasn’t going to be secure. Thus, data breaches such as this one raise questions about the adequacy of an organization’s data security system.

When a business, government entity, non-profit organization, school, or any other organization accepts and stores consumer data, it also accepts a legal obligation to ensure this information remains private. The United States data breach laws allow consumers to pursue civil data breach claims against organizations that fail to protect their information.

Of course, given the recency of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers data breach, the investigation into the incident is still in its early stages. And, as of right now, there is not yet any evidence suggesting IBEW is legally responsible for the breach. However, that could change as additional information about the breach and its causes is revealed.

If you have questions about your ability to bring a data breach class action lawsuit against the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, reach out to a data breach attorney as soon as possible.

What Should You Do if You Receive an International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Data Breach Notification?

If the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers sends you a data breach notification letter, you are among those whose information was compromised in the recent breach. While this isn’t a time to panic, the situation warrants your attention. Below are a few important steps you can take to protect yourself from identity theft and other fraudulent activity:

1. Identify What Information Was Compromised: The first thing to do after learning of a data breach is to carefully review the data breach letter sent. The letter will tell you what information of yours was accessible to the unauthorized party. Be sure to make a copy of the letter and keep it for your records. If you have trouble understanding the letter or what steps you can take to protect yourself, a data breach lawyer can help.

2. Limit Future Access to Your Accounts: Once you determine what information of yours was affected by the breach, the safest play is to assume that the hacker orchestrating the attack stole your data. While this may not be the case, it’s better to be safe than sorry. To prevent future access to your accounts, you should change all passwords and security questions for any online account. This includes online banking accounts, credit card accounts, online shopping accounts, and any other account containing your personal information. You should also consider changing your social media account passwords and setting up multi-factor authentication where it is available.

3. Protect Your Credit and Your Financial Accounts: After a data breach, companies often provide affected parties with free credit monitoring services. Signing up for the free credit monitoring offers some significant protections and doesn’t impact any of your rights to pursue a data breach lawsuit against the organization if it turns out they were legally responsible for the breach. You should contact a credit bureau to request a copy of your credit report—even if you do not notice any signs of fraud or unauthorized activity. Adding a fraud alert to your account will provide you with additional protection.

4. Consider Implementing a Credit Freeze: A credit freeze prevents anyone from accessing your credit report. Credit freezes are free and stay in effect until you remove them. Once a credit freeze is in place, you can temporarily lift the freeze if you need to apply for any type of credit. While placing a credit freeze on your accounts may seem like overkill, given the risks involved, it’s justified. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center (“ITRC”), placing a credit freeze on your account is the “single most effective way to prevent a new credit/financial account from being opened.” However, just 3% of data breach victims place a freeze on their accounts.

5. Regularly Monitor Your Credit Report and Financial Accounts: Protecting yourself in the wake of a data breach requires an ongoing effort on your part. You should regularly check your credit report and all financial account statements, looking for any signs of unauthorized activity or fraud. You should also call your banks and credit card companies to report the fact that your information was compromised in a data breach.

Below is a copy of the initial data breach letter issued by International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local # 5:

Dear [Consumer],

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local # 5 (“IBEW”) is writing to notify you of an incident that may affect the privacy of some of your information. Although we have no evidence of any identity theft or fraud occurring as a result of this incident, this letter provides details of the incident, our response, and resources available to you to help protect your information from possible misuse, should you feel it is appropriate to do so.

What Happened? On or around February 20, 2022, IBEW became aware of suspicious activity on its computer network. IBEW immediately launched an investigation, with the assistance of third-party computer forensic specialists, and determined that its network had been infected with malware which prevented access to certain files on the system. Through our investigation, we determined that, between December 29, 2021 and February 20, 2022, an unauthorized actor may have had access to certain systems that stored personal information. Although we have no evidence of any identity theft or fraud in connection with this incident, IBEW is notifying its current and retiree members, along with potentially impacted spouses.

What Information Was Involved? Our investigation determined the following types of your information may have been impacted by this incident: your [Extra2 - Variable Elements], and name. At this time, we have no indication that your information was subject to actual or attempted misuse as a result of this incident.

What We Are Doing. Data privacy and security are among IBEW’s highest priorities, and there are extensive measures in place to protect information in IBEW’s care. Upon discovery, IBEW promptly commenced an investigation with the assistance of third-party cyber security specialists to confirm the nature and scope of this incident. This investigation and response included confirming the security of our systems, reviewing the contents of relevant data for sensitive information, and notifying impacted individuals associated with that sensitive information. As part of our ongoing commitment to the privacy of personal information in our care, we are reviewing our policies procedures and processes related to the storage and access of personal information, and additional workforce training is being conducted to reduce the likelihood of a similar future event. We will also notify applicable regulatory authorities, as required by law.

As an added precaution, we are also offering 24 months of complimentary access to credit monitoring services through Experian. Individuals who wish to receive these services must enroll by following the attached enrollment instructions.

What You Can Do. We encourage you to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud by reviewing your account statements and monitoring your free credit reports for suspicious activity. You may also review the information contained in the attached Steps You Can Take to Help Protect Personal Information. There you will also find more information on the complimentary credit monitoring services we are making available to you. While IBEW will cover the cost of these services, you will need to enroll yourself in the services we are offering, if you would like to do so.

For More Information. We understand that you may have questions about this incident that are not addressed in this letter. If you have additional questions, please call our dedicated assistance line at (833) 475-1812 toll-free Monday through Friday from 8 am – 10 pm Central, or Saturday and Sunday from 10 am – 7 pm Central (excluding major U.S. holidays). Be prepared to provide your engagement number B029715. You may also write to IBEW at 5 Hot Metal Street, Suite 400, Pittsburgh, PA 15203.