Dark Reading

The Hartford Financial Services Group has lost three backup tapes containing the personal information of some 237,000 customers, employees, and those with insurance claims related to Hartford.

The company discovered that the tapes were missing on September 27, and has since contacted the affected individuals by letter, as well as the offices of state attorneys general around the country. A Hartford spokesperson says there’s no evidence thus far that the tapes were stolen, or that the personal data was accessed or abused.

Those affected include Hartford’s personal insurance, automobile insurance, and homeowner’s insurance holders, as well as other customers and people “affiliated with The Hartford,” the spokesperson said.

The data breach was discovered after the tapes were found missing from their container. “We were unable to determine how they were misplaced,” the spokesperson said. These are tapes that would normally be sent to and stored at a secure, off-site third-party facility, and the spokesperson did not know if the tapes were lost in transit.

Hartford is offering individuals whose data is at risk to enroll in free identity theft protection service for one year, including credit monitoring, credit reports, and $20,000 in identity theft insurance. The company will also reimburse any credit breach costs, the spokesperson said.

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