TORRANCE, Calif., Dec. 01, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Keenan & Associates (Keenan), a provider of third party administration services for various employer sponsored health plans is mailing letters to health plan members and some of their dependents related to a privacy incident.
On October 9, 2015, Keenan learned that documents containing information relating to some health plan members and some of their dependents could potentially be found through searches on the Internet. Keenan immediately began an investigation and discovered that the documents may have been made available on the Internet when a vendor misconfigured security settings on the portal where the documents were stored. The portal settings have since been reconfigured and the documents are no longer searchable on the Internet. Keenan has found no evidence to suggest that this incident was the result of a malicious act or “hacking” attempt. Keenan takes the privacy and confidentiality of plan participants very seriously and deeply regrets incident.
Keenan’s investigation has determined that the documents potentially made available on the Internet may have contained member and dependent name, address, telephone number, birth date, medical plan name, plan identifier and, in some instances, a Social Security number. The documents did not contain any medical information such as claim information, test results or diagnostic codes.
Keenan has no evidence that any of the information stored on the portal has been used improperly. However, in an abundance of caution, Keenan is beginning to mail letters to the potentially affected individuals today and is providing two years of free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services through Kroll. The letters contain a one-time activation code that can be used to enroll in identity theft protection services online or by U.S. mail. Keenan has also established a dedicated call center for individuals to call with any questions. More information can be found on Keenan’s website, available at: www.keenan.com. Individuals who believe they are affected by this incident but who have not received a letter by December 15, 2015 are encouraged to call (855) 287-9328, Monday through Friday, between 7:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. To help prevent something like this from happening in the future, Keenan has instructed its vendors not to use the software tool that caused the portal misconfiguration.
Keenan deeply regrets any inconvenience caused by this incident.
About Keenan Founded in 1972, Keenan is a top 25 insurance consulting and brokerage firm in the U.S., and the largest independent broker in California. Keenan is dedicated to providing superior insurance products and services to schools, community colleges, healthcare organizations and municipalities for employee benefits, health benefit management services, workers’ compensation, risk management, and property and liability. With headquarters in Torrance, CA, Keenan has a staff of more than 675 insurance specialists and branch offices in Riverside, San Clemente, Oakland, San Jose, Rancho Cordova, Redwood City, Pleasanton and Eureka. For more information, call 800-654-8102 or 310-212-3344, email info@keenan.com or visit www.keenan.com.
Media Contact: Eric W. Rose (805) 624-0572 or Eric@ekapr.com
