Recently, TBK Bank, SSB confirmed a data breach that may have exposed the names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and bank account information of certain customers.

If you received a data breach notification, it is essential you understand what is at risk. More about our investigation into this breach, and what you can do if your data was stolen, is available here.

Last year, 1,862 data breaches affected more than 189 million people. On average, victims of identity theft spend 200 hours and over $1,300 recovering their identity. Many victims also suffer emotional distress, credit damage, and may even end up with a criminal record. Taking immediate action is the best way to prevent the worst consequences of a data breach.

What We Know So Far About the TBK Bank Data Breach

According to an official filing by the company, on around December 6, 2021, TBK Bank became aware of unauthorized activity on an employee’s email account. TBK Bank secured the email account and then conducted an investigation into the nature and extent of the incident. The company’s investigation revealed that between December 1 and December 6, 2021, the unauthorized party was able to access the employee’s email account. The investigation could not rule out the possibility that the unauthorized party viewed emails or attachments containing sensitive consumer information.

Upon learning of the extent of the security breach, TBK Bank then reviewed the affected files to determine what information was compromised. On January 28, 2022, the company completed its review and, while the compromised information varies based on the consumer, it may include your name, Social Security number, driver’s license, state identification number, and passport number.

On March 17, 2022, TBK Bank began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident.

TBK Bank is a State Savings Bank based in Dallas, Texas. TBK Bank is a subsidiary of Triumph Bancorp, Inc., which is a publicly-traded company on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “TBK.” TBK Bank has 63 branches across Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, New Mexico, and Texas. The bank offers traditional banking products, including individual and business checking and savings accounts, mortgage loans, personal loans, business loans and more. TBK Bank has about 250 employees and generates approximately $161 million in annual revenue.

More About the Causes and Risks of Data Breaches

Often, data breaches are the result of a hacker gaining unauthorized access to a company’s computer systems with the intention of obtaining sensitive consumer information. While no one can know the reason why a hacker targeted TBK Bank, 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 a company experiencing a data breach can identify which files were accessible, there may be no way for the company 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 a TBK Bank data breach notification should take the situation seriously and remain vigilant in checking for any signs of unauthorized activity. Businesses like TBK Bank are responsible for protecting the consumer data in their possession. If evidence emerges that TBK Bank 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 TBK Bank Data Breach?

When customers decided to do business with TBK Bank, they assumed that the company would take their privacy concerns seriously. And it goes without saying that consumers would think twice before giving a company 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 a company’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 TBK Bank 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 TBK Bank 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 TBK Bank, reach out to a data breach attorney as soon as possible.

What Should You Do if You Receive a TBK Bank Data Breach Notification?

If TBK Bank 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 company 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 TBK Bank, SSB:

Dear [Consumer],

We are writing to inform you of an incident that may have involved some of your personal information. This notice explains the incident, measures we have taken, and additional steps you may consider taking in response.

We identified a cybersecurity incident involving unauthorized access to a TBK Bank employee’s email account. Upon discovery of the incident, we immediately launched an investigation and took steps to secure the email account. A cybersecurity firm was engaged, and the investigation determined that an unauthorized party was able to access the employee’s email account between December 1-6, 2021. The unauthorized access to the email account was terminated on December 6, 2021.

The investigation could not rule out the possibility that the unauthorized person viewed emails or attachments in the employee’s account before we terminated access. Out of an abundance of caution, we conducted a review of the emails and attachments in the employee email account to identify any personal customer information that may have been accessed. We completed that review on January 28, 2022 and determined that an email or attachment contained your name and one or more of the following: Social Security number, driver’s license or State-issued identification number, and/or Passport number.

We encourage you to remain vigilant by reviewing your account statements and credit reports for any unauthorized activity. If you notice any unauthorized activity, you should notify the relevant financial institution or credit bureau reporting the unauthorized activity immediately.

As a precaution, we are offering you a free one-year membership in Experian® IdentityWorksSM Credit 3B. This service provides you with identity detection and resolution of identity theft. IdentityWorks Credit 3B is completely free to you and enrolling in this program will not hurt your credit score. For more information on IdentityWorks Credit 3B, including instructions on how to activate your complimentary one-year membership, as well as some additional steps you can take in response, please see the pages that follow this letter.

At TBK Bank, we take privacy and security seriously. To help prevent something like this from happening again, we have implemented additional measures to enhance our existing security protocols. We regret this incident occurred and apologize for any inconvenience.

If you have any questions, please call [TFN phone number] Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 5:30 pm Central Time, excluding major U.S. holidays.