Alaskans Who Have Provided Data to DHSS Urged To Protect Themselves From Identity Theft

On September 16, the State of Alaska issued a press release concerning the security breach during a cyber attack on DHSS which was first detected in May of 2021.

According to the Press Release, as soon as the attack was detected, DHSS immediately shut down systems to protect individuals’ information and deny further access by the attacker to DHSS data. Before DHSS implemented the shutdown, the attackers potentially had access to the following types of individuals’ information:

Full names
Dates of birth
Social Security numbers
Addresses
Telephone numbers
Driver’s license numbers
Internal identifying numbers (case reports, protected service reports, Medicaid, etc.)
Health information
Financial information
Historical information concerning a person’s interaction with DHSS

Due to the potential for stolen personal information, DHSS urges all Alaskans who have provided data to DHSS, or who may have data stored online with DHSS, to take actions to protect themselves from identity theft.

Free credit monitoring is being made available to any concerned Alaskan as a result of this breach. More information about the breach, including the breach notification statement and frequently asked questions, are available at dhss.alaska.gov. On Tuesday, Sept. 21, a toll-free hotline will be available (5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Alaska time) to answer questions and assist people with signing up for the free credit monitoring service. That phone number and the website for the credit monitoring service will be provided on the DHSS website at dhss.alaska.gov.