On June 7, 2024, the Union of California State Workers d/b/a Local SEIU 1000 (“SEIU”) filed a notice of data breach with the Attorney General of Vermont after discovering that an unauthorized actor was able to access information stored on the organization’s computer network. In this notice, SEIU explains that the incident resulted in an unauthorized party being able to access consumers’ sensitive information. Upon completing its investigation, SEIU 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 Local SEIU 1000, 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 Local SEIU 1000 data breach. For more information, please see our recent piece on the topic here.
What Caused the Local SEIU 1000 Data Breach?
The Local SEIU 1000 data breach was only recently announced, and more information is expected in the near future. However, SEIU’s filing with the Attorney General of Vermont provides some important information on what led up to the breach. SEIU also posted an open letter to all members on its website that discusses the incident.
According to these sources, on January 18, 2024, SEIU experienced a network disruption. In response, SEIU launched an investigation with the help of third-party cybersecurity experts.
On March 19, 2024, through its investigation, SEIU confirmed that certain files on its network were accessed by an unauthorized person. It was later determined that some of these files contained confidential information about SEIU members.
After learning that sensitive consumer data was accessible to an unauthorized party, Local SEIU 1000 reviewed the compromised files to determine what information was leaked and which consumers were impacted. SEIU completed this process on May 8, 2024.
On June 7, 2024, Local SEIU 1000 sent out data breach letters to anyone who was affected by the recent data security incident. Unfortunately, the publicly available SEIU data breach letters do not mention what information was leaked. However, the personalized data breach letters that were recently sent out should provide victims with a list of what information belonging to them was compromised.
More Information About Local SEIU 1000
Local SEIU 1000 is a division of the SEIU labor union, with its headquarters in Sacramento, California. SEIU is made up of over 700,000 nurses, healthcare workers, janitors, social workers, security officers, in-home caregivers, school and university employees, court workers, and city, county, and state employees. Local 1000 represents members who work in more than 1400 worksites in California, Texas, New York, Chicago, and Hawaii. SEIU generates approximately $240 million in annual revenue.
