The VA’s monthly report to Congress for November has been released, and we’re still seeing low-tech breaches involving papers being left where they shouldn’t be left. Exhibit A, from the VA in Boston: An 11-page clinic list was found in a public bathroom in a heavily trafficked area. The list had been printed on November 4,…
Category: Government Sector
Providence officials: No sensitive information stolen during website hack
Annie Shalvey has an update on a hack previously noted on this site: Providence officials are working to determine who hacked the city’s website on Saturday. A screen grab of the site over the weekend showed a hacker offering to sell “all sensitive data and database” collected. City officials said Monday the hacker asked for a $1,500…
Hacker Claims to Have Taken Sensitive Data from City of Providence, Rhode Island
Uh oh. GoLocalProv reports: The City of Providence’s website has been hacked and the hacker has posted an ominous message claiming to have control of sensitive data and that the data is for sale. It is unknown what data, if any, is under the control of the City of Providence, but as three years ago the City…
OPM Gives Green Light to Start Submitting Data Breach Verification Requests
Ian Smith reports that if you think you were impacted by the OPM data breach but haven’t received a notification letter, you can submit a verification request through a government web site: The Office of Personnel Management has completed mailing notification letters to roughly 93% of individuals whose Social Security Number and other personal information was…
A Department of Veterans Affairs Nurse Convicted of Falsifying Medical Records and Computer Fraud
Federal prosecutors had charged a former employee of the Miami VA medical center (the Bruce W. Carter VA Medical Center) under the federal hacking statute as part of charging him for altering a patient’s records to cover up deficiencies in care. A former Department of Veterans Affairs employee pled guilty today to destroying, altering and falsifying records and committing computer…
Audit Finds IT Security Flaws Still Plague Calif. Courts
Nick Cahill reports: Despite a 2013 audit revealing significant information security flaws, the Judicial Council of California hasn’t improved its control systems and remains “unacceptably” at risk for data breaches, according to a follow-up audit. The council’s case management records and human resources data are specifically jeopardized because of its failure to implement recommendations from…