Major Data Breach at International Chapter of the P.E.O. Sisterhood Affects Over 94,000 Individuals

• The International Chapter of the P.E.O. Sisterhood experienced a major data breach due to a ransomware attack on April 14, 2023, potentially compromising sensitive information of 94,200 individuals including names, social security numbers, and contact details.
• Following the discovery of the breach, the organization has undertaken measures to restore its systems, conducted an investigation with the help of cybersecurity experts, and reported the incident to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, highlighting the importance of vigilance and protective actions for those affected.

The International Chapter of the P.E.O. Sisterhood, a non-profit organization based in Des Moines, Iowa, has announced that it fell victim to a major data breach, potentially affecting 94,200 individuals.

On April 14, 2023, the organization’s systems were hit by a ransomware attack, which resulted in a complete shutdown and lockdown of their systems. The breach was discovered on May 31, 2023, after which the organization worked tirelessly to restore their systems and conduct a thorough investigation to ascertain the extent of the breach.

The legal counsel for the P.E.O. Sisterhood, Brian McCormac of the BrownWinick Law Firm, disclosed that the investigation was unable to conclusively determine the exact nature of the information accessed by the attackers. However, the breached systems contained sensitive information, including names, dates of birth, social security numbers, home addresses, phone numbers, account numbers, and email addresses.

In a notification letter sent to those potentially affected, the P.E.O. Sisterhood stated, “We take the privacy and security of your information very seriously, and while we have no evidence to suggest any information was misused because of this incident, we are notifying you out of an abundance of caution.”

The organization has actively engaged with legal and cybersecurity experts to further scrutinize the attack and understand its ramifications. The International Chapter of the P.E.O. Sisterhood has also reported the incident to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Moving forward, the P.E.O. Sisterhood is taking additional steps to fortify its systems against similar criminal activities in the future. The organization is urging those affected to remain vigilant and take measures to protect their information.

Individuals concerned about their information are advised to monitor their accounts and report any suspicious activity immediately. As of now, the organization has not disclosed if they will be offering credit monitoring or identity theft protection services to those affected.