Gesa Credit Union Data Breach Investigation

Recently, Gesa reported to the Attorney General of Washington that it had experienced a data breach in which sensitive personal identifiable information in its care may have been compromised. According to the breach notice, on August 14, Marquis Software Solutions (“Marquis”), a third-party vendor for Gesa, detected suspicious activity on its network and determined that it had experienced a ransomware attack.¹ As a result, Marquis launched an investigation to determine the nature of the incident.

Through its investigation, Marquis confirmed to Gesa that sensitive personal information in its systems may have been accessed and acquired by an unauthorized third party during the breach. As a result, Marquis began a review of the data to determine what information had been impacted as well as identify the specific individuals affected. While the information impacted varies depending on the individual, the type of information potentially exposed includes:

• Name
• Social Security number
• Address
• Phone number
• Taxpayer identification number
• Financial account information without security or access codes
• Date of birth

As a result of the breach, on behalf of Gesa, Marquis began mailing data breach notification letters to impacted individuals. Based on the breach notice sent to Washington residents, Gesa and Marquis are providing affected individuals with a list of the specific types of sensitive information impacted and complimentary credit monitoring services. A link to the breach notification letters that Gesa filed with the Attorney General of Washington is below.