From the Office of the Indiana Attorney General, Todd Rokita:
Following a data breach this month by Eskenazi Health, Attorney General Todd Rokita is warning Hoosiers, specifically any current or former patients or employees, to watch out for suspicious activity with their accounts and personal information. The time shortly after a breach is a prime opportunity for hackers and scammers to exploit and sell the information they have stolen.
“As with any major breach, Hoosiers should protect and monitor their personal information closely,” Attorney General Rokita said. “Our Office’s Data Privacy and Identify Theft Unit is prepared to direct consumers to data theft resources to combat further damage and prevent additional harm if they become victims of scammers and fraud.”
Attorney General Rokita and the Office of the Indiana Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division offer the following tips as best practices:
- Be wary of and on the lookout for any suspicious activity in your bank account, credit cards, and investment and retirement accounts.
- Change the passwords on all your existing accounts. A password of at least 12 letters, numbers and symbols, with at least two capital letters, two numbers and two special characters is best.
- Use a password manager to keep track of your passwords and use 2 factor authentication whenever it’s available.
- You should also request copies of your credit report from all three major credit reporting agencies from https://annualcreditreport.com. At the current time, the credit reporting agencies are permitting consumers to request a free credit report each week.
- You should also consider freezing your credit information. The credit freezes are free, and they will help prevent new accounts from being opened in your name.
Equifax https://my.equifax.com/consumer-registration/UCSC/#/personal-info
Experian https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
TransUnion https://www.transunion.com/credit-help
Hoosiers are encouraged to contact the Office of the Indiana Attorney General about any suspected fraud, identity theft, scams or scam attempts. Consumers can file a complaint by visiting indianaconsumer.com or calling (800) 382-5516.
Featured photo by Markus Spiske from Pexels