Data breach hits 68,000 Texans, 800,000 nationwide at Texas life insurance servicer

Nearly 68,000 Texans and more than 800,000 people nationwide could be affected by a data breach at a Brownwood-based insurance servicer, according to filings with the Texas and Maine attorneys general offices.
Landmark Admin announced the breach on Oct. 23, and notices have been sent to those affected, according to the filings. Information potentially gathered includes names, addresses, dates of birth, social security numbers/tax identification numbers, driver’s license numbers/government-issued ID numbers, financial information such as credit card numbers, and medical and health insurance information.
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Landmark offers third-party administration services for life insurance and annuity companies, including Liberty Bankers Insurance Group headquartered in Dallas. Liberty Bankers Insurance Group includes American Monumental Life Insurance Company, Pellerin Life Insurance Company, American Benefit Life Insurance Company, Liberty Bankers Life Insurance Company, Continental Mutual Insurance Company, and Capitol Life Insurance Company.
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In a copy of the notice sent to those affected filed with the Maine attorney general’s office, Landmark said it received personal information from individuals who at one time were a producer, policy-owner, insured, beneficiary, or payor for insurance policies which Landmark administered, or continues to administer, for Liberty Bankers Insurance Group.
The Maine filings indicate that the breach occurred due to hacking and was discovered on May 13 when Landmark detected unusual activity in its system and promptly disconnected the affected systems and remote access to the network.
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Landmark hired a third-party cybersecurity firm to secure the breach and conduct a forensic investigation, and during the investigation on June 17 the “unauthorized actor” regained access to Landmark’s system. Though the investigation confirmed that data was taken, it was not able to confirm which specific files were taken. As such, Landmark is notifying “all individuals whose private information may have been contained in its systems at the time of the incident,” on a rolling basis as they are discovered, with the first wave of notices having been sent out Oct. 23-24.
According to the filings, Landmark has taken steps to secure its systems in response to the data breach and is offering identity theft protection services through a third-company whose services include 12 months of credit and CyberScan monitoring, a $1 million insurance reimbursement policy, and ID theft recovery services.
The Federal Trade Commission advises that those affected by a data beach take advantage of identity theft services when offered, in addition to steps you can take yourself. These steps include ordering free credit reports to check for unrecognized accounts and placing a credit freeze for fraud alert to limit the ability of malicious actors to open new accounts in your name. You can find out more about how to recover from a data breach at identitytheft.gov/databreach.
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Landmark Admin declined to comment at this time.
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This story has been updated with a response from Landmark Admin.