A cyberattack on Rhode Island’s social services portal may have compromised the personal data of hundreds of thousands of residents, state officials announced.
Governor Dan McKee’s office confirmed a “high probability” of sensitive information being breached, affecting users of RIBridges, the platform for Medicaid, SNAP, and other programs, as well as Healthsource RI, the state’s insurance marketplace.
The breach potentially exposed names, addresses, Social Security numbers, banking details, and other personal data. Officials warned that any individual who has applied for health coverage or social services through these platforms could be at risk. Deloitte, which operates the RIBridges system, discovered potential malicious activity on December 5 and later confirmed on December 13 that “malicious code” had been detected. The system was taken offline as a precaution to address the threat.
While the investigation continues, residents can still access services through paper applications. At a press conference, Rhode Island Chief Digital Officer Brian Tardiff revealed that cybercriminals have claimed responsibility and are demanding payment to prevent the release of the stolen data, as reported. by The New York Times.
The attack underscores vulnerabilities in public systems handling sensitive information. State and federal agencies, along with Deloitte, are working to assess the extent of the breach and bolster security measures to prevent future incidents.
Featured Image courtesy of Bill Hinton/Getty Images
Follow us for more tech news updates.