An unknown actor gained unauthorized access to a TVCC employee email account in order to fraudulently redirect a payment that was supposed to be made to the College. Although we had no information that any data was accessed in the account, we investigated further and in September, 2020, we learned that there was some sensitive information in the account which might have been accessed. We then notified the College community.

While that is unclear, if the access happened, it occurred some time in 2019. We did not learn what happened and that sensitive information may have been involved until September, 2020.

As soon as we discovered the incident, we constructed a team of legal and cybersecurity experts who investigated the incident. This investigation revealed that sensitive information about individuals may have been at risk.

TVCC did not know of the access as it was happening. As soon as TVCC found out, it investigated the incident to determine what happened.

For most affected people, the information involved included names, Social Security numbers, and student identification numbers. For some people date of birth was also included.

We are taking the following actions to protect your information: we are offering you 12 months of free credit monitoring and identity theft restoration services. We are also making changes to try to ensure that nothing like this happens again at TVCC.

The credit monitoring and identity theft restoration services being offered include: 12 months of credit monitoring and identity theft restoration services at no cost to you through IDExperts, a leader in risk mitigation and response. These services include credit and CyberScan (dark web) monitoring, a $1,000,000 insurance reimbursement policy, exclusive educational materials, and fully managed identity theft recovery services.

Dark web monitoring is a product that monitors the Internet for the sale of personal information.

You can also contact your state’s Attorney General for more information about fraud alerts, security freezes and steps you can take to prevent identity theft.

Here is the contact information for each of the three credit reporting agencies:

TransUnion
P.O. Box 1000
Chester, PA 19016
1-800-916-8800
www.transunion.com

Experian
P.O. Box 2002
Allen, TX 75013
1-888-397-3742
www.experian.com

Equifax
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374
1-866-349-5191
www.equifax.com

The call center can be reached by calling (833) 754-1360 or going to https://response.idx.us/tvcc

Yes, you must enroll by March 29, 2021.

The services start on the date you enroll and continue for the time period specified in your letter.

Please know that potential access to your information does not mean you have or will experience identity theft. We recommend that you enroll in the free credit monitoring services that are provided, and take measures to protect your personal information.

ID Experts is a third party vendor that TVCC engaged to provide monitoring services and to help answer questions about this incident.

You can follow and review your account statements and credit reports closely. To receive a free copy of your credit report, you can visit:
Free Annual Report
P.O. Box 105281
Atlanta, GA 30348
1-877-322-8228
annualcreditreport.com

If you detect any suspicious activity on an account, you should promptly notify the financial institution or company with which the account is maintained. You also should promptly report any fraudulent activity or any suspected incidence of identity theft to proper law enforcement authorities, your state attorney general, and/or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), you have rights to know what is in your credit file, to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information; to have consumer reporting agencies correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information; as well as other rights. More information about the FCRA, and your rights pursuant to the FCRA, can be found here 

You can also establish a fraud alert on your credit report. An initial fraud alert is free and will stay on your credit file for at least 90 days. The alert informs creditors of possible fraudulent activity within your report and requests that the creditor contact you prior to establishing any accounts in your name. To place a fraud alert on your credit report, contact any of the three credit reporting agencies. The three credit reporting agencies are TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax. Additional information is available here

You also have the right to place a security freeze on your credit report. A security freeze is intended to prevent credit, loans and services from being approved in your name without your consent. To place a security freeze on your credit report, you need to make a request to each consumer reporting agency. You may make that request by certified mail, overnight mail, or regular stamped mail, or online by following the instructions found at the websites listed below. You will need to provide the following information when requesting a security freeze (note that if you are making a request for your spouse, this information must be provided for him/her as well): (1) full name, with middle initial and any suffixes; (2) Social Security number; (3) date of birth; (4) address. You may also be asked to provide other personal information such as your email address, a copy of a government-issued identification card, and a copy of a recent utility bill or bank or insurance statement. It is essential that each copy be legible, display your name and current mailing address, and the date of issue. There is no charge to place, lift or remove a freeze. You may obtain a security freeze by contacting any one or more of the following national consumer reporting agencies:

TransUnion (FVAD)
P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19016
1-800-916-8800
www.transunion.com

Experian Security Freeze
P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013
1-888-397-3742
www.experian.com

Equifax Security Freeze
P.O. Box 105788
Atlanta, GA 30374
1-866-349-5191
www.equifax.com

You may choose to notify the three major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian and Trans Union, and request they flag the deceased credit file. This will prevent the credit file information from being used to open credit. To make this request, mail a copy of your family member’s death certificate to each company at the addresses below:

Equifax
Equifax Information Services
P.O. Box 105169
Atlanta, GA 30348
www.equifax.com

TransUnion
P.O. Box 1000 
Chester, PA 19016
1-800-916-8800
www.transunion.com

Experian
Experian Information Services
P.O. Box 9701
Allen, TX 75013
www.experian.com

 

You can request that each of the three national credit reporting agencies perform a manual search for a minor’s Social Security number to determine if there is an associated credit report. Copies of identifying information for the minor and parent/guardian may be required, including birth or adoption certificate, Social Security card and government issued identification card. If a credit report exists, you should request a copy of the report and immediately report any fraudulent accounts to the credit reporting agency. You can also report any misuse of a minor’s information to the FTC here  For more information about Child Identity Theft and instructions for requesting a manual Social Security number search, visit the FTC website 

Contact information for the three national credit reporting agencies is listed above.