A security breach may have exposed the personal information of at least 500 northern Alaskans to unknown hackers, possibly in Russia, according to the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services.
Katie Marquette, a spokeswoman for the department, said by phone that security staff are still analyzing the extent of the breach.
“We want to make sure people know so they can be aware,” Marquette said.
In a message Thursday, the department said a computer in the northern region of the Division of Public Assistance was infected with a Trojan virus. The computer was infected about April 26, according to an investigation by department security staff. The investigation also revealed that the computer had unauthorized software installed and had accessed sites in Russia.
It is not known whether the people behind the virus are Russian or were merely using a Russian site.
According to DHSS, the computer “had documents including information on pregnancy status, death status, incarceration status, Medicaid/Medicare billing codes, criminal justice, health billing, social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, first and last names, birthdates, phone numbers, and other confidential data.”
The records were limited to only those in the department’s northern region, which includes offices in Fairbanks and Nome. Offices in Southcentral and Southeast are not affected.
Alaskans who have worked with the northern region of the Division of Public Assistance should call 1-888-484-9355 to see if their information was included in the security breach.
• Contact reporter James Brooks at jbrooks@juneauempire.com or 523-2258.
