Marin Housing Authority (MHA) has notified individuals that on September 16, 2024, it discovered unauthorized access to multiple MHA email accounts. According to the notice, an investigation found that whoever gained access to these accounts may have been able to view sensitive information and manipulate communications sent from the compromised accounts. MHA reported the incident to the FBI and brought in a cybersecurity forensics team to investigate. The organization has not stated publicly how the intruder first got into the email accounts, but the incident falls under a hacking or system intrusion into MHA’s own email environment rather than a breach at an outside vendor.
The letter is addressed to people whose personal information was stored in or passed through the affected MHA email accounts. MHA has not provided a total count of how many individuals were notified in this filing, so if you received a letter, it means your specific information was identified in the review of the compromised accounts — this notice does not apply to the general public or all MHA tenants or applicants automatically.
What information was exposed?
- Full name
- Home address
- Email address
- Phone number
- Date of birth
- Credit card and debit card information
- Financial account information
- Passport numbers
- Social Security numbers
- Tax identification numbers
MHA is offering free credit monitoring through Privacy Solutions, which includes credit monitoring with alerts, one-bureau credit score and report access, SSN and dark web monitoring, and up to $1 million in identity theft insurance. To enroll, visit www.privacysolutions.com and click ‘Activate Account,’ then enter the activation code provided in your individual letter and complete the identity verification steps. The specific activation code and enrollment deadline are unique to each recipient and were not included in the template portion of the letter, so check your own notice carefully for those details.
What should you do now?
- Enroll in the free Privacy Solutions credit monitoring offered by MHA before any stated deadline in your letter, since it includes SSN monitoring and identity theft insurance at no cost to you.
- Because full Social Security numbers, tax ID numbers, and passport numbers were involved, place a credit freeze with Equifax, Experian, TransUnion, and Innovis — this is the strongest step you can take to stop new accounts from being opened in your name.
- Review your credit card and bank statements closely for any unfamiliar charges, since payment card and financial account information was also involved.
- Watch for IRS-related fraud, such as unexpected notices about tax filings under your name, and contact the IRS promptly if you suspect misuse of your SSN for tax purposes.
- Consider signing up for a service like Aura or LifeLock, which can alert you if your Social Security number, financial information, or other personal details appear elsewhere, including on the dark web.
- Place an initial fraud alert on your credit file, which is free and prompts creditors to verify your identity before opening new credit in your name.
- Be cautious of phishing emails or calls referencing this breach, since your name, email, and phone number were also exposed and could be used to make scam attempts look more convincing.
If you have questions, Marin Housing Authority can be reached at 855-260-0593 (8:30 am – 5:00 pm PST).