Kimco Realty’s Weingarten Investors Suffer From a Serious Data Breach
Table of Contents
- By Steven
- Published: Apr 28, 2023
- Last Updated: Nov 23, 2023
Kimco Realty is a major real estate investment company based in Jericho, NY. The company specializes in developing shopping centers and helps businesses obtain the commercial real estate they need for grocery stores and other plazas. The company focuses on metropolitan locations primarily and maintains a staff of about 630 employees while generating more than $1.7 billion in annual revenue.
How Did the Attack Occur?
On February 8, 2023, around the time when Kimco Realty acquired Weingarten Realty Investors, the Weingarten data servers were attacked, and a great deal of consumer data was taken. The attack was on the Weingarten files, but those files were under the custody of Kimco Realty since the company was newly acquired. It's unclear how the attack was able to occur, but there was a great deal of confidential information involved in the attack that could have all been exposed due to this data breach. Once the attack was identified, Kimco Realty launched a formal investigation into the matter and put a team of security specialists on the task of securing the Weingarten files and preventing future attacks from occurring.
What Information Was Viewed or Stolen?
During the data breach, consumers involved had their Social Security numbers, driver's license numbers, full names, bank account information, health insurance information, and birth dates exposed. Some of this information was exposed for each individual identified as being at risk in this data breach, but many individuals only had a few of these details exposed.
How Did Kimco Realty Admit to the Breach?
On April 14, 2023, Kimco Realty filed a report with the Attorney General of Texas concerning the data breach. The report details what information could have been lost and basic information about how the data breach occurred. The company also sent out personalized letters to each of the people that may have been exposed to the data breach. If your information was at risk by this breach, you will receive a notice from Kimco Realty explaining the situation.
What Will Become of the Stolen Information?
We have no way of proving what will happen with the Weingarten data files, but it's likely they will be used in an effort to commit fraud and perform identity theft attacks. The data will likely change hands multiple times and will be sold for profit. If your data was involved in this breach, you are at risk of being attacked, and you should prepare to protect yourself from this breach as much as possible. By taking a few simple measures, you can minimize the damage done to you because of this breach.
What Should Affected Parties Do in the Aftermath of the Breach?
If you are notified that your data may be at risk because of this Kimco data breach, you should immediately get your credit report from each of the three credit bureaus. Once you have your credit reports, you should look over them for any suspicious account openings or other changes. Watch your financial accounts as well, and be careful about any emails you open or respond to. If you get an email from an unfamiliar individual, don't open file attachments and avoid providing confidential or personal information through email.
