APD Bungles Personal Information of 11,402 People
A statement issued by the Anchorage Police Department (APD) says 11,402 people will be notified that personal information provided in traffic collision reports was uploaded to LexisNexis, a third-party vendor used by APD — in unredacted form. APD says they first became aware of the situation on February 15, 2021.
APD says in their statement that they immediately shut down the system and began an investigation to determine the nature and scope of the incident. After undertaking what the police department says was a "comprehensive and diligent review to identify what personal information was unredacted in the reports and who was impacted," their investigation determined that 11,402 people had been impacted between April 2019 and February 15, 2021.
The affected individuals had their date of birth and or driver's license number released "unredacted" according to APD's statement.
"APD takes this incident seriously. Information privacy and security are among our highest priorities and APD continues to ensure strict security measures are in place. All 11,402 people will be notified directly via a letter about the incident, corrective actions, and what steps they can take at this time," notes the statement.
APD says it has no evidence of any actual or attempted misuse of the unredacted personal information and says only traffic collision reports were involved writing that social security numbers are not listed on traffic collision reports.
As a result of the investigation, APD says it has implemented new procedures to ensure this type of error does not occur again.
The Anchorage Police Department says if you haven’t received a letter by June 30th and believe you may be a victim because you were involved in a traffic collision, to please call the Records Department at 907-786-8900 option #1.
