Two people whose personal information was compromised in a data breach at Rhode Island’s public bus service that affected about 22,000 people sued the agency and a health insurer on Wednesday. Three to search for money damage and answers.
The class-action lawsuit filed in Providence Superior Court by attorneys-in-law for the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island names the Rhode Island Public Transportation Authority and United Healthcare as defendants.
The personal information of approximately 5,000 RIPTA employees and retirees and thousands of current, former and retired public workers, including Social Security numbers and Medicare identifiers, was hacked into. August 2021 through unauthorized access to RIPTA’s computer systems.
“When an individual’s confidential personal and health care information is compromised, that individual will have to worry about the potential for identity theft that could lead to financial ruin by affecting their savings.” their savings, livelihoods, credit scores, and access to health care,” said ACLU attorney Peter Wasylyk. “It can cause significant stress for the rest of that individual’s life.”
The compromised information was provided by United, the company that formerly administered the state’s employee wellness program.
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A spokesperson for United said in a statement that the company was cooperating with the state attorney general’s office’s ongoing investigation into the breach.
“Protecting our members’ privacy is a top priority, and we continue to work with multiple parties to learn about the data breach that affected the Public Transport Authority’s computer systems.” the statement said.
A spokesperson for RIPTA said in an email that the agency had no comment.
Alexandra Morelli, who works for the state but has never worked for RIPTA, said the data breach resulted in fraudulent withdrawals totaling thousands of dollars from her personal bank account and unauthorized use of her credit card, all while she was trying to plan her wedding. .
She spent countless hours working with banks, credit bureaus and law enforcement trying to protect her personal information.
“This whole experience has been and continues to be incredibly frustrating and anxiety-provoking,” she said.
The lawsuit alleges negligence by the state agency and insurance company, as well as violations of two state laws aimed at protecting personal information.
The lawsuit also seeks a court order ordering the defendants to strengthen their cybersecurity protections and answers to what it says are unanswered questions, such as why RIPTA has information about people who don’t work at the agency and why it took the fourth month to warn victims of the violation.
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