Blue Shield of California Breach - July and October 2022

Blue Shield of California is a member of the Blue Shield Association. The organization is dedicated to offering affordable healthcare to California citizens. The company manages individual and family healthcare plans for residents throughout California and has over 4.5 million members that work with more than 65,000 different physicians throughout the state.

What Was the Breach?

• Full Name
• Home Address
• Social Security Number
• Phone Number
• TIN or Taxpayer Identification Number
• Email Address

How Did the Breach Occur?

An employee of Blue Shield of California sent a spreadsheet containing sensitive information about customers of the broker to a personal email address. Sending the spreadsheet outside of the secure network exposed it and put the information contained within it at risk.

When Did This Breach Occur?

The Blue Shield of California data breach occurred on October 30 and July 17, 2022. On those two dates, the same employee sent the same spreadsheet to a personal email account address. The employee was later forced to remove the spreadsheet file from their account.

Who Does the Breach Impact?

This Blue Shield data breach impacts customers of the broker that sent out the emails. Anyone with the information contained on the spreadsheet has been notified of the potential data risk. It's possible that the data on the spreadsheet was copied and shared with other individuals, and there's a risk of data exposure.

How Many Files Does the Breach Affect?

The Blue Shield breach only affects a single spreadsheet file. This file is the only one known to be exposed. It's unclear at this time how many individuals were notified about the breach, but the file could have contained information for dozens or hundreds of customers. If you receive a letter from Blue Shield of California, take steps to monitor your credit and financial accounts and consider placing a freeze on your credit.