How to protect identity after cybersecurity breach

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – The City of Wichita announced Tuesday that personal information was breached in a cyber attack.

The City confirmed Tuesday that someone copied files from the City’s network. The files that were copied from the City’s network include personal data like social security numbers, ID numbers, and payment card information.

The City won’t be more specific about what kind of traffic or law enforcement files were breached or how far back the data goes.

KSN was told that all the information the City can release is on its website, including how to get a credit report or file a fraud alert.

If your information is already out there, you need to keep a close eye on all your accounts, according to experts.

“You need to look at what’s going on; you need to be careful what happens and make sure everything on your credit card is something that ought to be on there every time you get a bill that it something you’re supposed to pay,” said Attorney Charles O’Hara.

O’Hara says you can’t prevent information that’s been hacked from being used. The best thing is to catch any breach early.

“There are ways to protect yourself it’s time to start taking that advice and putting it into action,” Jay McLaughlin, Director of Operations and RBS IT Solutions.

You can and should take immediate steps to protect yourself, McLaughlin said.

According to McLaughlin, it starts with changing your passwords and making them more distinct, so you’re not using variations of the same.

“If you’re using potentially the same email address to register for some of the services in the city as maybe what you use across a banking account or maybe a social media account, and there’s potential that you’re using the same password, this now becomes a quick attack to try to pivot to those types of accounts as well,” he said.

McLaughlin said it’s also a good idea to use two-factor identification across platforms.

“Data breaches have become more and more common so I do think we’ve got to anticipate these things are going to happen and have a plan in place to prepare for that,” he said.

McLaughlin said you can also use credit monitoring. It won’t stop someone from getting a hold of your data, but it’ll help you monitor unusual activity.

We have details for how to put a freeze on your credit here.