McKee urges RI residents to act immediately after major cyberattack on state system

Source: WPRI-TV/Providence, RI

Posted: Dec 14, 2024 / 04:08 PM EST
Updated: Dec 15, 2024 / 12:10 AM EST


PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Rhode Island officials are urging residents to take immediate steps to protect themselves following a major cyberattack on state government, warning that their personal data could soon be exposed.

At a hastily called news conference on Saturday evening — the second in as many days — Gov. Dan McKee and other officials shared practical tips about what people can do if they are among the hundreds of thousands of people at risk from the hack. “We know this situation is alarming, and it’s stressful,” McKee said. He urged people to save the URL for the website where the state will be posting continued updates about the situation: cyberalert.ri.gov.

Officials say they first learned on Dec. 5 that an international cybercriminal group may have breached RIBridges, the state system formerly known as UHIP used for a host of health and benefits programs. They became more alarmed in recent days after the hackers sent a screenshot of file folders from RIBridges and revealed malware had been put into the system.

The hackers are believed to have stolen information — including Social Security and bank account numbers — for potentially hundreds of thousands of residents who have used a long list of state programs over the last eight years. Individuals who are directly affected will be getting a letter in the mail from the state notifying them.

Read more: https://www.wpri.com/news/politics/mckee-to-hold-second-news-conference-on-major-cyberattack/