Recently, Youth Consultation Services (“YCS”) confirmed that it experienced a data breach compromising the sensitive information—including Social Security numbers—of certain individuals who received services through the organization.

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.

“I speak to data breach victims almost every day, and many don’t fully grasp the impact a breach can have,” attorney Richard P. Console, Jr. said. “Once your sensitive personal data falls into the hands of cybercriminals, you have a much higher risk of identity theft for the rest of your life. If a company allows your personal data to be stolen, holding that company accountable through a class action lawsuit may be the only way to obtain fair compensation and to send a message to other companies to be more careful.”

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 Youth Consultation Services Data Breach

According to a notice posted on the organization’s website, on May 21, 2021, YCS discovered that the YCS Foundation computer system was inaccessible. In response, the organization looked into the incident, learning that an unauthorized party was able to access certain files on its network between April 13, 2021 and May 21, 2021.

Upon learning of the extent of the security breach, Youth Consultation Services then reviewed the affected files to determine what information was compromised. On February 16, 2022, the organization completed its review of the files. While the compromised information varies based on the individual, it may include your name, contact information, Social Security number, driver’s license number, state identification number, financial account information, medical history, diagnosis, and treatment information, physician information, prescription medication information and health insurance information.

On March 28, 2022, Youth Consultation Services began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident.

Youth Consultation Services is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Newark, New Jersey. The organization provides services to New Jersey families who have children with special needs. YCS offers youth individualized educational, mental health and behavioral health programming. Youth Consultation Services was founded in 1918 and currently employs approximately 1,500 people.

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 YCS, 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 a Youth Consultation Services data breach notification should take the situation seriously and remain vigilant in checking for any signs of unauthorized activity. Organizations like YCS are responsible for protecting the consumer data in their possession. If evidence emerges that YCS 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 YCS Data Breach?

When families trusted YCS with their information, they assumed that the organization would take their privacy concerns seriously. And it goes without saying that consumers would think twice before giving an organization 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 Youth Consultation Services 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 YCS 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 Youth Consultation Services, reach out to a data breach attorney as soon as possible.

What Should You Do if You Receive a Youth Consultation Services Data Breach Notification?

If Youth Consultation Services 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 data breach letter notice located on the Youth Consultation Services website:

Dear [Consumer],

Youth Consultation Services (“YCS”) is committed to protecting the security and confidentiality of the information we receive as a result of the services we provide. Accordingly, we are providing notice of an event that may affect the security of certain information. While we have no reports of identity theft or fraud as a result of this event, we take this incident seriously and are providing individuals with information about the event, the steps we have taken and are taking in response, and additional steps individuals can take, should they feel it is appropriate to do so.

What Happened? On or about May 21, 2021, YCS discovered that the servers at its YCS Foundation location were inaccessible. We responded to this incident immediately and began an investigation to assess the security of our systems and to confirm the full nature and scope of the activity. Through our investigation and response, we determined that an unknown individual(s) had gained access to certain parts of our computer network between April 13, 2021 and May 21, 2021. The investigation further revealed that the unknown individual(s) viewed and/or took certain files during that time. Accordingly, YCS, with the assistance of data review specialists, undertook a comprehensive and time-intensive review of the contents of the affected files to determine what information was contained therein and to whom the information related. We then conducted a manual review of our internal records to locate address information for potentially impacted individuals and determine our relationship to those individuals in order to provide accurate and complete notices, which was completed on February 16, 2022.

What Information Was Involved? We currently have no evidence of identity theft or fraud in connection with this incident. YCS sent notification letters to affected individuals for whom we have sufficient contact information indicating the types of information affected. The potentially impacted information varies by individual, but may have included: names, contact information, Social Security numbers, driver’s license/state identification numbers, financial account information, medical information (such as medical history, diagnosis, treatment information, physician information and/or prescription medication information), and health insurance information.

What We Are Doing. In response to the incident, YCS has taken the following actions to mitigate the risk of compromise to your information and to better prevent a similar event from recurring: (1) changed user passwords; (2) implemented enhanced technical safeguards to strengthen the security of the YCS environment; (3) monitored network activity and remediated any suspicious activity, with the assistance of third-party specialists; and (4) began providing notification to potentially impacted individuals as quickly as possible. Further, we are adapting our existing employee training protocols relating to data protection and security. We also notified federal law enforcement authorities of the incident and provided relevant regulatory notices, including notice to the Department of Health and Human Services.

What You Can Do. YCS encourages all individuals to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud by reviewing account statements and explanation of benefits, and monitoring free credit reports for suspicious activity. We also encourage individuals to review the below Steps You Can Take to Help Protect Personal Information that includes additional action individuals may take to protect their information should they feel it appropriate to do so.

YCS understands that you may have questions about this incident. If so, please contact us at 1-833-648-2052 (toll free), Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET, excluding U.S. holidays. You may also write to YCS at 284 Broadway, Newark, NJ 07104.