Clearwater Credit Union Breach

Clearwater Credit Union is the second-largest credit union bank in Montana. The organization began in 1956, has more than 51,000 members, and employs over 126 people. It was unsettling to learn that the bank branch was the victim of a recent data breach and that as many as 25,000 members had their information exposed.

What Was the Breach?

• Full Name
• Social Security Number
• Additional Personal Information

How Did the Breach Occur?

Clearwater Credit Union was exposed to data loss through one of its vendors. The vendor relied on the MOVEit file transfer tool, which has been getting hit hard for so many major companies around the world. More than 130 companies are known victims of this attack, and it's estimated that more than 1.3 million individuals lost data to this attack. Clearwater Credit Union itself wasn't breached, but its vendor had data for some of the bank's customers, exposing them anyway.

When Did This Breach Occur?

An official notice for this Clearwater Credit Union breach was filed on June 30, 2023. It's likely the data was actually lost in May or early June. Many other companies lost data to the same attack around that time.

Who Does the Breach Impact?

Approximately 25,660 Clearwater Credit Union customers had their personal data exposed due to this data breach. The personal data lost for these customers varies by individual, but most people involved are at risk for identity theft attacks.

How Many Files Does the Breach Affect?

Clearwater Credit Union didn't lose any files directly. Instead, one of its third-party vendors was hit by the MOVEit data breach. It's unknown how many files the vendor lost during this breach.