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Keller Williams Elevate Provides Notice of Privacy Incident
Tuesday, September 20, 2022
Joplin, Missouri - August 26, 2022- Keller Williams Realty Elevate, formerly Keller Williams of Southwest Missouri, ("Keller Williams") is announcing a recent event that may impact the security of certain personal information. Although Keller Williams is unaware of any misuse of this information, they are providing information about the incident, steps taken since discovering the incident, and what potentially impacted individuals can do to better protect against potential misuse of personal information as a result of this incident, should they feel it is appropriate to do so.
What Happened? On March 4, 2022, a Keller Williams agent became aware of suspicious activity in an employee email account. Keller Williams immediately took steps to secure the email account and launched investigation working with a third-party experts to determine the nature and scope of the incident. The investigation determined that there was unauthorized access to the email account. However, the investigation was unable to determine what, if any, emails within the email account were accessed.
Keller Williams, with the assistance of third-party specialists, began a thorough review of emails and attachments contained in the email account to determine whether sensitive information may have been present in the account. Our investigation determined that information related to certain individuals may have been accessed by the unauthorized actor. Keller Williams then undertook an in-depth, lengthy, and labor-intensive process to identify the individuals whose information may have been impacted, and to identify address information for those potentially impacted individuals for purposes of providing notice.
What information was affected? The review of the email account determined information related to certain individuals was contained within. The following types of information may be affected for potentially impacted individuals as a result of this incident: Social Security number, driver's license number, financial account information, health insurance information, and/or medical information.
How will individuals know if they are affected by this incident? Keller Williams is mailing notice letters to the individuals for whom they have a valid mailing address whose information was determined to be at risk. If an individual did not receive a letter but would like to know if they are affected, they may call the dedicated assistance line below. Because Keller Williams has insufficient contact information for some of the potentially impacted individuals, they are providing notice to those potentially impacted individuals by way of a notification published on its website as well as to Missouri media outlets.
What Keller Williams is doing. Keller Williams takes this incident and the security of personal information in their care seriously. Upon becoming aware of this incident, Keller Williams immediately took steps to confirm the security of their systems. Keller Williams is reviewing existing security policies and have implemented additional measures to further protect against similar incidents moving forward. Keller Williams reported this incident to law enforcement and are notifying potentially impacted individuals and organizations, so that they may take steps to best protect the information, should they feel it is appropriate to do so.
In an abundance of caution, Keller Williams provided notice of this incident along with complimentary access to credit monitoring and identity restoration services for affected individuals, and information on what an impacted individual can do to better protect against the possibility of identity theft and fraud. Individuals can also review the information below for guidance on how to protect personal information. Keller Williams advises all potentially impacted individuals to remain vigilant by reviewing account statements and monitoring free credit reports for suspicious activity and to detect errors.
For more information. Should you have any questions or concerns regarding this incident, please call their dedicated, toll-free number at 1-800-939-4170, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Central Time.
Steps Individuals Can Take to Protect Personal Information
Under U.S. law, a consumer is entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. To order your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call, toll-free, 1-877-322-8228. You may also directly contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below to request a free copy of your credit report.
Consumers have the right to place an initial or extended "fraud alert" on a credit file at no cost. An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer's credit file. Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer's credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer's identity before extending new credit. If you are a victim of identity theft, you are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years. Should you wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any one of the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below.
As an alternative to a fraud alert, consumers have the right to place a "credit freeze" on a credit report, which will prohibit a credit bureau from releasing information in the credit report without the consumer's express authorization. The credit freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent. However, you should be aware that using a credit freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in your credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit. Pursuant to federal law, you cannot be charged to place or lift a credit freeze on your credit report. To request a security freeze, you will need to provide the following information:
1. Full name (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III, etc.);
2. Social Security number;
3. Date of birth;
4. Addresses for the prior two to five years;
5. Proof of current address, such as a current utility bill or telephone
bill;
6. A legible photocopy of a government-issued identification card (state
driver's license or ID card, etc.); and
7. A copy of either the police report, investigative report, or complaint to
a law enforcement agency concerning identity theft if you are a victim of
identity theft.
Should you wish to place a credit freeze, please contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below:
Equifax
Experian
TransUnion
https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/ https://www.experian.com/help/ https://www.transunion.com/credit-help
888-298-0045
1-888-397-3742
833-395-6938
Equifax Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 105069 Atlanta, GA 30348-5069 Experian Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TransUnion Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 2000, Chester,
TX 75013 PA 19016
Equifax Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 105788 Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 Experian Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TransUnion Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 160, Woodlyn,
TX 75013 PA 19094
Additional Information
You may further educate yourself regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, credit freezes, and the steps you can take to protect your personal information by contacting the consumer reporting bureaus, the Federal Trade Commission, or your state Attorney General. The Federal Trade Commission may be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580; www.identitytheft.gov; 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); and TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. You can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. You have the right to file a police report if you ever experience identity theft or fraud. Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, you will likely need to provide some proof that you have been a victim. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and your state Attorney General. This notice has not been delayed by law enforcement.
Media Contact: Whitney Messer, 417-623-9900
/PRNewswire/ -- Aug. 26, 2022
SOURCE Keller Williams Realty Elevate
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