Scam of the day – May 25, 2023 – Two Million People Affected by Medical Equipment Company Data Breach

by | May 24, 2023 | Scam of the day

Once again I need to tell you about another major data breach.  This time it is Apria Healthcare LLC a  home medical equipment company who, we are just now learning was hacked in 2019 and 2021 by the same hackers.  As a result of the data breach sensitive information including credit card and debit card numbers of two million of Apria Healthcare’s customers were stolen.

As I have reminded you many times, we are only as safe and secure as the security of the companies, government agencies and websites that have our personal information.  Even if you are extremely diligent in protecting your personal information, you can be in danger of identity theft and scams if your personal information falls into the hands of hackers.

So what can you do to protect yourself from these data breaches that will be occurring?

TIPS

One important lesson is to limit the amount of personal information that you provide to companies and websites whenever possible.  For example, your doctor or hospital doesn’t need your Social Security number for its records.  This is particularly significant because health care providers are the biggest targets for data breaches.

You should make sure that you have a unique password for each of your online accounts so that if one of your passwords is compromised in a data breach, all of your accounts will not be in danger.  If your information is compromised in a data breach, you should immediately change the password for that account.

If you have not already done so, set up dual factor authentication for each of you accounts where it is available. This will protect you from having those accounts stolen by someone who may have access to your password.

You also should limit your debit card use to using it at ATMs because the law regarding liability for fraudulent debit card charges is not as protective as the law regarding credit cards.

Freezing your credit is also something everyone should do.  It is free and easy to do.  In addition, it protects you from someone using your identity to obtain loans or make large purchases even if they have your Social Security number.  If you have not already done so, put a credit freeze on your credit reports at all of the major credit reporting agencies.  Here are links to each of them with instructions about how to get a credit freeze:
And if you really want to scare yourself, check out Haveibeenpwned which is a website that allows you to enter your email address and it will tell you what data breaches you have been involved with. https://haveibeenpwned.com/

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