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(The Epoch Times)—The Social Security numbers of nearly one million Medicare beneficiaries may have been exposed in a data breach linked to a vulnerability in software used by a Medicare contractor in Wisconsin, the federal government has announced.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said in a Sept. 6 news release that a data breach at Wisconsin Physicians Service Insurance Corp. (WPS), one of its contractors, may have exposed the personal information of 946,801 Medicare beneficiaries. The exposed information includes not only names and Social Security numbers but also taxpayer identification numbers, Medicare Beneficiary Identifiers, dates of birth, addresses, and hospital account numbers.
The breach occurred between May 27 and May 31, 2023, due to a vulnerability in MOVEit, a third-party software developed by Progress Software, which WPS used to transfer files as part of the Medicare claims process.
The breach was first disclosed publicly by Progress Software on May 31, 2023, and a patch to address the vulnerability was released soon after. However, a subsequent investigation by WPS in May 2024 uncovered new evidence that unauthorized third parties had accessed and copied files containing sensitive information before the patch was applied.
On July 8, 2024, WPS notified CMS that some of the affected files contained personal information including Social Security numbers, which can be damaging if exploited, as it opens the door to identity theft and fraud.
“At this time, we are not aware of any reports of identity fraud or improper use of your information as a direct result of this incident,” CMS and WPS stated in a notification letter to those affected.
CMS said it’s working with law enforcement and cybersecurity consultants to safeguard the personal information of Medicare beneficiaries.
The agency also emphasized that beneficiaries’ Medicare coverage or benefits have not been impacted by the breach. New Medicare cards with updated Medicare Beneficiary Identifiers will be issued to those whose identifiers have been compromised. CMS advised beneficiaries to continue using their current cards until they receive new ones in the mail.
WPS, in coordination with CMS and law enforcement, is continuing to investigate the breach. The contractor has offered affected individuals 12 months of free credit monitoring and identity protection services, according to the agency.
The MOVEit vulnerability, first discovered in May 2023, has had widespread impacts, affecting both government and private organizations. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) reported on June 15 that multiple federal agencies were compromised due to this vulnerability in the widely used file transfer software.
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The online extortion group Cl0p claimed responsibility for the breach reported by CISA but stated they would not use the stolen data from government agencies.
Afghan Who Plotted Election Day Terrorism Was a CIA Contractor
by Headline USA
It looks like the FBI may have entrapped a former CIA contractor in a plot to commit a terrorist attack on Election Day. The Justice Department announced this week the arrest of Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, a 27-year-old Afghan man, alleging that he was planning an Election…
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Genetically Modified Crops: A Growing Threat to Health and the Environment
by Olivia Cook
(Natural News)—Bioengineered foods and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are commonly confused with each other, but they have different meanings. “Bioengineered” describes food and products that are enhanced with scientific techniques to add particular traits. In contrast, “GMOs” involve changing the genetic makeup of animals, plants or microbes in ways that…
United Nations Expands into “UN 2.0” to Turbocharge Sustainable Development Goals
by Liberty Sentinel
The United Nations (UN) has not gone rogue, argues journalist Alex Newman on American Family Radio’s show, At the Core , but they have always existed to achieve one goal: one-world government. This goal is not only un-American, but it is unbiblical. Newman and AFR host Walker Wildmon also dive…
Congressman Matt Gaetz Says Epstein Was Killed as Part of a ‘Foreign Operation’
by Modernity
Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz says sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was killed as part of a ‘foreign operation’, but refused to divulge which government was responsible for his death. Gaetz made the comments during an appearance on Benny Johnson’s show. In August 2019, Epstein was found unresponsive in his jail cell…
DOJ Takes Aim at Breaking Up Google
by Infowars
On Tuesday, the United States announced potential plans to request a court mandate directing Alphabet Inc to divest significant segments of its operations, including its Chrome browser and Android operating system. This move aims to dismantle what is described as an illegal monopoly held by Google in the online search…
Is Gavin Newsom Hoping that Kamala Harris Loses the Election?
by American Greatness
Two minutes of airtime during the Democrat National Convention in Chicago gave California Governor Gavin Newsom his latest opportunity to build his national stature. As part of the announcement of Kamala Harris’s clinching of the Democrat presidential nomination during a symbolic roll call of state delegates, Newsom portrayed Harris as…
Is It Time for a Nationwide Ban on Fluoridated Water?
by Natural News
Do community leaders reserve the right to mass medicate every person in their community using the water supply as a vector? What if that medicine was eventually exposed as a POISON decades later? What if that POISON was damaging the brains of children and stunting the cognitive development of the…
GOP Rep. Luna: We Need to End FEMA Migrant Spending and Boost Disaster Relief Funding
by Breitbart
On Wednesday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Ingraham Angle,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) stated that FEMA’s funding for migrants should be zeroed out at once and that while there is FEMA money for hurricane victims, we should also boost emergency relief funding “that will go directly to Americans…
Earth’s Continental Crust in America and China Is Breaking Apart
by End Times Headlines
Researchers, who have been studying the dramatic changes in the continental configurations of Earth over the past billions of years, have made a stunning observation: that the oldest continental crusts are disintegrating. According to experts, the Earth’s crust went through expansion and contraction and has transformed not only its positions…
“Line All Those Guys Up and Shoot Them”: Professor Says Men Who Don’t Support Female Candidates Should Be Massacred
by Daily Caller
(Jaryn Crouson, DCNF)—A professor at the University of Kansas (UK) told a class that men who would not vote for a female president should be lined up and shot, according to a video posted on X Wednesday. The university confirmed the professor is employed at UK and made the comment…
