Posted On April 1, 2023 Consumer Privacy & Data Breaches
April 1, 2023 – Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Inc. discovered that an unauthorized user had accessed the company’s corporate system and taken files, including private employee information, and on March 27, 2023, the company filed a report of a data breach with the Massachusetts Attorney General. According to the company’s report, the event led to illegal access to the names, Social Security numbers, and addresses of present and past employees. Bright Horizons started notifying all individuals affected by the data breach.
The data breach lawyers at Console & Associates, P.C. are now looking into the Bright Horizons Family Solutions data breach. If you have received a breach notice and are interested in learning more about the risks of identity theft and what you can do to protect yourself, we are offering free consultations during which we can discuss your legal options for obtaining monetary compensation from Bright Horizons.
The childcare and education company Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Inc. offers care and educational services to children of all ages, including infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and pre-kindergarteners. Although headquartered in Newtown, Massachusetts, the business has over 700 locations in the US and Canada alone and more than 1,000 globally. More than 25,800 individuals are employed by Bright Horizons Family Solutions, which has an annual revenue of almost $2 billion.
According to the company’s report to the Attorney General of Massachusetts, on December 11, 2022, Bright Horizons detected unusual activity within its computer system. In response, the company began working with law enforcement and outside cybersecurity specialists to investigate the incident.
Bright Horizons discovered strange behavior in its computer system on December 11, 2022, according to the company’s complaint to the Massachusetts Attorney General. In response, the business started an investigation into the event with outside cybersecurity experts and law enforcement.
Per the company’s report with the Attorney General of Massachusetts, on December 11, 2022, Bright Horizons noticed atypical activity in its computer system. The company started an investigation aided by cybersecurity experts and the authorities and confirmed that a third party had gained access to files containing confidential information about past and present employees. Bright Horizons Family Solutions discovered that employees’ names, Social Security numbers, and addresses may have been leaked after looking through affected files, though the information may vary by individual.
On March 27, 2023, Bright Horizons Family Solutions sent data breach notification letters to everyone whose information was exposed in the leak.
In the event that Bright Horizons Family Solutions alerts you of a data breach, it implies that your personal data, including your full name, Social Security number, and address, may now be in the hands of an unauthorized individual. This private information can be used by hackers in a number of ways. Using Social Security numbers, identity theft and fraud are common crimes. Also, such information might be offered for sale on the dark web to someone looking to commit crimes with it. Hackers may easily learn more about you after they already have the basic minimum of information about you, which expands the range of crimes they are capable of committing. It’s critical that you are knowledgeable about your rights and the options available to you as a victim.
The consumer privacy lawyers at Console & Associates, P.C. help customers affected by data and security breaches pursue legal solutions by offering free consultations. By explaining your rights in clear, concise terms, we help you make an informed decision about your next steps. If you are a victim of the Bright Horizons data breach, Console & Associates, P.C. will investigate at no charge to you and offer advice on how to proceed. If you decide to pursue a case, rest assured that we don’t get paid unless you do. If your claim is successful, legal fees are either paid out of the funds recovered or by the defendant. If your claim is not successful, you pay nothing.
To schedule your free consultation, just call (866) 778-5500 today or fill out our secure contact form.
Below is a portion of the letter sent to affected individuals:
Dear [Redacted],
We are writing to notify you that a recent cyber incident may have had an impact on some of your personal information. This letter is being sent to provide you with additional information and to advise you of services Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. (“Bright Horizons”) is offering at no charge to you to help protect your continued privacy. It is important to note that we have no evidence that your personal information has been used inappropriately or fraudulently, but we are sending this letter to tell you what happened, what information was potentially involved, what we have done and what you can do to protect your continued privacy.
Unfortunately, these types of incidents are becoming common. They are frustrating and disruptive to organizations like ours and our employees. Despite our regular monitoring, vigilance, and prevention measures, this incident occurred, and we are working hard to ensure this does not happen again.
What Happened? On December 11, 2022, Bright Horizons noticed unusual log-in activity on its network system. Bright Horizons immediately launched an investigation and response effort with the assistance of cyber experts and law enforcement. Our investigation revealed that an unauthorized third-party accessed Bright Horizons’ corporate systems and took certain files that contained personal information of a small percentage of current or former employees. On March 9, 2023, we confirmed that your personal information was among the information that may have been taken.
What Information Was Involved? The files at issue were records from ChildrenFirst Inc. that included your name, address, and social security number. While there is no evidence that the information has been used in an unauthorized way, we did want to make you aware of the situation out of an abundance of caution given the nature of this information.
What We Are Doing. To help protect your identity, we are offering a complimentary 24-month membership of Experian’s® IdentityWorksSM. This product provides you with superior identity detection and resolution of identity theft. To activate your membership and start monitoring your personal information please follow the steps below:
-Ensure that you enroll by: [Redacted (Your code will not work after this date.)
-Visit the Experian IdentityWorks website to enroll: [Redacted]
-Provide your activation code: [Redacted]
If you have questions about the product, need assistance with identity restoration or would like an alternative to enrolling in Experian IdentityWorks online, please contact Experian’s customer care team at 877.288.8057 by [Redacted].
Be prepared to provide engagement number [Redacted] as proof of eligibility for the identity restoration services by Experian.
