OCEAN COUNTY – Government officials confirmed that letters from the U.S. Department of Justice informing people of a data breach are legitimate.
At least 17 people contacted the Ocean County Department of Consumer Affairs to see if this was a scam, Director Ronald Heinzman said.
“We confirmed with the Department of Justice that these letters are indeed genuine and that the federal government was reaching out to individuals who may be impacted by the data breach,” Heinzman said.
Greylock McKinnon and Associates, a Department of Justice contractor, was the victim of a ransomware attack that may have revealed the personal information of some individuals who had business dealings with the firm. Leaked information could have included a person’s name, address, Social Security number, date of birth, driver’s license number and Medicare Beneficiary Identifiers.
Acting Director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, Norm Wong, sent the letter to people who might have been impacted. The breach did not reach the DOJ, and was limited to the contractor Greylock McKinnon and Associates.
After learning about the breach, Ocean County then contacted the people who were concerned that they were beings scammed.
“My office sent letters to every individual assuring them the correspondence was legitimate and did originate with the Department of Justice,” said Heinzman.
