Posted On April 13, 2023 Consumer Privacy & Data Breaches
April 13 – After a cyber event exposed the personal information of over 20,000 clients on April 7, 2023, HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union (HawaiiUSA) notified the Attorney General of Maine of the breach. According to the company’s filing, a third party gained access to the personal information of some of its customers as a result of the event. After it was determined that customer information had been compromised, HawaiiUSA immediately began notifying those whose personal information had been compromised.
Console & Associates, P.C. strongly advises anyone who has received a notification letter from HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union to speak with our data breach lawyers as soon as possible to better prepare themselves for what may lie ahead. We’re offering free consultations to help you figure out what to do next, find out what safeguards exist, and figure out if you have grounds to sue HawaiiUSA for financial compensation following a data breach.
HawaiiUSA is a financial services company that caters to the educational community, including teachers, administrators, staff, students, and their families. HawaiiUSA is a Hawaii-based company that has its headquarters in Honolulu and primarily services the islands of Oahu, Maui, the Big Island, and Kauai. HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union has been around since 1936 and currently has a workforce of over 365 workers and an annual revenue of around $66 million.
An investigation into a recent cybersecurity issue in which an unauthorized entity gained access to an employee’s email account has been concluded, as stated in a filing with the Attorney General of Maine made by HawaiiUSA. On December 12, 2022, HawaiiUSA became aware of the problem, prompting the corporation to launch an inquiry with the help of a cybersecurity firm.
According to the findings of the HawaiiUSA investigation, the employee’s email account was compromised as a result of a successful social engineering attack. According to the findings of the investigation, the unauthorized third party also gained access to the personal data of some clients.
HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union examined the affected files after learning that sensitive customer data had been made available to an unauthorized party. The credit union is still working to identify the affected members and the specific details of the breach. On March 15, 2023, HawaiiUSA finalized this procedure. Information such as names, financial account details, and Social Security numbers may have been compromised, albeit the exact details vary on the individual.
Data breach letters were sent out by HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union on April 7, 2023, to everyone whose personal information was exposed in the leak.
The goal of social engineering is not to do damage to a computer system. Instead, social engineering is a form of influence tactics that relies on psychological appeals, much like the techniques of a classic con artist. The goal of social engineering is to convince the victim to trust you so they’ll drop their guard and follow your instructions, which may lead to their being infected with malware.
Human fallibility, as opposed to flaws in computer programs or operating systems, is what makes social engineering such a threat. The mistakes of authorized users are significantly more difficult to detect and prevent than those of malicious software. A single, easily duped individual can offer enough information to launch an assault that can harm an entire company, making social engineering a potentially devastating threat.
Social engineering occurs when a hacker contacts their target and pretends to be affiliated with a reputable company or institution. Sometimes they’ll even try to pass themselves off as someone the victim knows.
If the victim falls for the deception, the aggressor will urge them to take further action. Passwords, birthdays, and account numbers are just a few examples of the kinds of private information that might be compromised in this way. Another tactic is to direct the victim to a website that secretly installs malware on their machine.
Attacks that use social engineering to get access to sensitive information have evolved into more complex forms throughout time. Social engineering is one of the most common ways attackers get beyond an organization’s first defenses and cause additional disruption and harm. Fake websites and emails can seem convincing enough to trick victims into disclosing information that can be exploited for identity theft.
One way to lessen the threat of such attacks is adequate training for employees to recognize the signs of a social engineering attack. Reminding each employee how important they are to the security of the company as a whole and teaching them to recognize and defend against, and report these attacks goes a long way in ensuring the security of a company.
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 HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union 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.
