The recent security breach involving Rhode Island’s RIBridges benefits system has raised significant concerns. A hacker managed to infiltrate the system in July 2024, leaving officials unaware of the breach until December, five months later. This breach jeopardised the private data of over 650,000 individuals, making this incident a critical alert for cybersecurity standards in state-operated systems.
Key Points
- The hacker accessed the RIBridges system via the virtual private network (VPN) on July 2, 2024.
- State officials only became aware of the breach five months later, in December 2024.
- Over 650,000 people’s private data was compromised during this time.
- An investigation by CrowdStrike revealed the extent of the hacker’s access to sensitive files and folders.
- Governor Dan McKee’s administration has responded by releasing a summary of the investigation findings.
Why should I read this?
If you care about the safety of your personal data, you’ll want to get the full scoop on this breach. The events surrounding the RIBridges hack highlight crucial vulnerabilities in state systems and how long it can take officials to respond to such serious security threats. Understanding these issues could help prevent similar incidents in the future and keep your information safer.