Columbus extends free credit monitoring to anyone affected by data leak

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The fallout continued Friday from the revelation that the personal information of uncounted people, and not just city employees, were affected by the leak of stolen Columbus data onto the dark web.

It included expanded free credit monitoring, an expanded lawsuit, and Ohio supporting local efforts against the leak of personal information stolen from city servers.

The city announced Friday afternoon that it is offering two years of free credit monitoring from Experian for all residents and any impacted individuals. The monitoring includes $1 million of protection against fraud and identity theft. Previously, credit monitoring had been offered to city employees.

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“I’m angry and concerned that the city and our residents are victims of this cyberattack,” said Mayor Andrew Ginther, who has called a news conference Saturday morning to provide updates. “My priority is to do everything we can to protect the residents of our city. … I strongly urge Columbus residents and those who think they may have been impacted to take advantage of this added protection.”

The move comes after a cybersecurity expert approached NBC4 Investigates, showing how he had started to access the leaked data, hours after Ginther had said he was told it was either encrypted or corrupted. Since then, that expert, Connor Goodwolf, has been attempting to identify anybody who may have had their information stolen. He’s determined that police officers, city employees, court witnesses and City Hall visitors are among the people who may have information about them on the dark web.

With the information, crime victims could be at risk of being exposed, and others could have lines of credit opened in their names. For each group, there are steps they can take to protect themselves.

To receive the free credit protection, go to columbus.gov/cyber or call 833-918-5161 with the code B129833.

Also Friday, a lawsuit filed against the city over how it handled the ransomware attack was amended to include a new group of potential plaintiffs.

Two Columbus law firms, Cooper Elliott and Meyer Wilson, filed the lawuit on Aug. 9 on behalf of two unnamed Columbus police officers, with one saying his Social Security number had been stolen and with the other saying that, as an undercover investigator, he now had to fear for his safety. The lawsuit was filed as a class action to potentially allow for others to join. It will now include any person who may have been affected.

“The expanded class now represents not only city employees, but every individual affected by the breach,” a statement from the law firms read. “Many in this community, including law enforcement officers, face a heightened risk due to their professions. The City’s recklessness could have life-altering consequences for those whose data is now exposed.”

Ginther said that a criminal investigation continues into the data theft, which the group Rhysida claimed responsibility for through an auction listing on the dark web. The leak happened after the purchase price was apparently not met.

“Our understanding of this situation has evolved by the hour, and as such, we will continue to report only what our cybersecurity experts and IT team are able to verify without undermining this active criminal investigation,” Ginther said.

Those efforts are apparently being supported by the state. Gov. Mike DeWine said Friday that members of the Ohio National Guard had been deployed at the city’s request. He didn’t specify which force, but the Guard does have a section with expertise in cybersecurity that was established under DeWine in 2019.

“The great thing about the Guard is these are citizens,” DeWine said. “They have other jobs, most of them. We have some in the guard who have an expertise in this area. And we have deployed them over the last several years to a number of cities around the state. And we will certainly certainly continue to do that when requested by a local community.”

Read the amended lawsuit below.

004.-First-Amended-Complaint-8-16-2470Download

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