FLORIDA- — DEO officials said on July 16, that the Department learned of a data security incident involving potentially fraudulent activity connected to claimant accounts within the CONNECT system.
Information contained in the claimant account may have been accessed, including social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, bank account numbers, claim information, and other personal details, such as an address, phone number, and date of birth.
Hackers may have acquired the account pin that claimants use to access their CONNECT account may have been compromised.
A total of 57,920 claimant accounts were targeted. These targeted accounts may have been accessed by an unauthorized party. This activity may have occurred between April 27, 2021, and July 16, 2021. There is no evidence of any other unauthorized access and no indication of related malicious activity on the Department’s internal networks.
In response, the Department has:
- Locked accounts targeted by this activity;
- Improved PIN security controls;
- Enhanced network security controls;
- Notified impacted claimants;
- Notified the Department of Legal Affairs, Department of Management Services, including the Division of State Technology, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement;
- Reported impacted accounts to the three U.S. credit reporting agencies; and
- Purchased a year’s subscription of identity protection services for affected claimants.
The Department is recommending that the impacted claimants monitor their financial accounts, and if they see any unauthorized activity, they should promptly contact their financial institution. Claimants may contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) by calling 1-877-ID-THEFT or online at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/
While states continue to battle significant attacks on unemployment systems across the nation, the prevention of fraud remains a top priority for the Department. Florida is a leader in identifying and preventing unemployment fraud, and we will continue to take necessary precautions to protect Floridians.
