National CARES Mentoring Movement ("NCMM") Provides Notice of Data Event

NEW YORK, Nov. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- National CARES Mentoring Movement ("NCMM") is providing notice of a recent data privacy event that may have affected personal information relating to certain individual consultants and employees. Although NCMM is unaware of any misuse of this information, they are providing information about the incident, steps taken since discovering the incident, and steps an individual can take to better protect against potential misuse of their information.

What Happened? On February 18, 2021, NCMM became aware of suspicious activity in certain employee email accounts. They immediately launched an investigation, with the assistance of third-party forensic specialists, to determine the nature and scope of the activity. The investigation determined that there was unauthorized access to the affected accounts between January 16, 2021 and February 3, 2021. However, they were unable to determine which, if any, emails and attachments in the email accounts may have been opened or viewed as a result. NCMM conducted a thorough review of the relevant accounts to identify the types of information stored there and to whom it related. On or about August 26, 2021, NCMM's review determined that the affected accounts contained information related to certain individuals. NCMM has worked since this time to confirm the identities of the impacted individuals and prepare an accurate notification. While NCMM has no reason to believe that any identity theft or unauthorized use of the affected information has occurred, NCMM is providing notice of this incident in an abundance of caution. 

What Information Was Involved? The information impacted by this event varied by individual but may include certain individuals' names, Social Security number, driver's license number, financial account information, medical information, passport number, date of birth, and electronic signature.

How will individuals know if they are affected by this incident? NCMM is mailing notice letters to the individuals whose protected information was affected by this event, and for whom we have a valid mailing address. If you do not receive a letter but would like to know if you are affected, you may call the assistance line listed below.

What is NCMM doing in response? NCMM has taken precautionary measures to protect the information in their possession, and has worked to add further technical safeguards to their environment. Following this incident, NCMM took immediate steps to improve the security of their environment and increase their security posture. NCMM is also implementing additional training and education to employees to prevent similar future incidents. They are also offering the impacted individuals access to complimentary credit monitoring services as an added precaution. Because NCMM has insufficient contact information for some of the individuals whose information may be contained in the impacted email accounts, they are providing notice to those potentially impacted individuals by way of a notification published to media outlets in New York.

What You Can Do. NCMM advises all potentially impacted individuals to remain vigilant by reviewing account statements and monitoring free credit reports for suspicious activity and to detect errors. NCMM encourages individuals to review the information below related to "Steps Individuals Can Take to Help Protect Against Identity Theft and Fraud," which provides details on how to better protect against possible misuse of information.

For More Information. Individuals who may have questions about the incident may contact NCMM's dedicated assistance line at (833) 796-8642, Monday through Friday from 6am to 8pm PST and 8am to 5pm PST on Saturday and Sunday (excluding major U.S. holiday).

STEPS INDIVIDUALS CAN TAKE TO HELP PROTECT AGAINST IDENTITY THEFT AND FRAUD

Monitor Your Accounts

Under U.S. law, a consumer is entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. To order your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call, toll-free, 1-877-322-8228. You may also directly contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below to request a free copy of your credit report.

Consumers have the right to place an initial or extended "fraud alert" on a credit file at no cost. An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer's credit file. Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer's credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer's identity before extending new credit. If you are a victim of identity theft, you are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years. Should you wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any one of the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below.

As an alternative to a fraud alert, consumers have the right to place a "credit freeze" on a credit report, which will prohibit a credit bureau from releasing information in the credit report without the consumer's express authorization. The credit freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent. However, you should be aware that using a credit freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in your credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit. Pursuant to federal law, you cannot be charged to place or lift a credit freeze on your credit report. To request a security freeze, you will need to provide the following information:

1. Full name (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III, etc.);
2. Social Security number;
3. Date of birth;
4. Addresses for the prior two to five years;
5. Proof of current address, such as a current utility bill or telephone bill;
6. A legible photocopy of a government-issued identification card (state driver's license or ID card, military identification, etc.); and
7. A copy of either the police report, investigative report, or complaint to a law enforcement agency concerning identity theft if you are a victim of identity theft.

Should you wish to place a fraud alert or credit freeze, please contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below:

Additional Information

You may further educate yourself regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, credit freezes, and the steps you can take to protect your personal information by contacting the consumer reporting bureaus, the Federal Trade Commission, or your state Attorney General. The Federal Trade Commission may be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580; www.identitytheft.gov; 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); and TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. You can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. You have the right to file a police report if you ever experience identity theft or fraud. Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, you will likely need to provide some proof that you have been a victim. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and your state Attorney General. This notice has not been delayed by law enforcement.

California Residents: Visit the California Office of Privacy Protection (www.oag.ca.gov/privacy) for additional information on protection against identity theft.

Kentucky Residents: Office of the Attorney General of Kentucky, 700 Capitol Avenue, Suite 118 Frankfort, Kentucky 40601, www.ag.ky.gov, Telephone: 1-502-696-5300.

Maryland Residents: Office of the Attorney General of Maryland, Consumer Protection Division 200 St. Paul Place Baltimore, MD 21202, www.oag.state.md.us/Consumer, Telephone: 1-888-743-0023.

New Mexico Residents: You have rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, such as the right to be told if information in your credit file has been used against you, the right to know what is in your credit file, the right to ask for your credit score, and the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. Further, pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the consumer reporting agencies must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information; consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information; access to your file is limited; you must give your consent for credit reports to be provided to employers; you may limit "prescreened" offers of credit and insurance you get based on information in your credit report; and you may seek damages from a violator. You may have additional rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act not summarized here. Identity theft victims and active duty military personnel have specific additional rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. You can review your rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act by visiting www.consumerfinance.gov/f/201504_cfpb_summary_your-rights-under-fcra.pdf, or by writing Consumer Response Center, Room 130-A, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580.

New York Residents: The Attorney General may be contacted at: Office of the Attorney General, The Capitol, Albany, NY 12224-0341; 1-800-771-7755; https://ag.ny.gov/.

North Carolina Residents: Office of the Attorney General of North Carolina, Consumer Protection Division, 9001 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-9001, www.ncdoj.gov, Telephone: 1-919-716-6400, 877-566-7226 (toll free within NC).

Washington D.C. Residents: The Office of Attorney General for the District of Columbia can be reached at: 400 6th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001, Washington, D.C. 20001; 1-202-442-9828; https://oag.dc.gov.

SOURCE National CARES Mentoring Movement