NOTICE OF CYBER INCIDENT
August 15, 2025
In connection with the June 2025 ransomware attack, Mower County has determined that there was unauthorized access to and acquisition of protected health information related to individuals who received services from the County Health and Human Services Department. At this time, we are not aware of any misuse of the information involved in this incident. We take this matter very seriously because of our commitment to the privacy and security of all County information. We are providing this general notice to inform potentially impacted individuals and suggest ways that individuals can protect their information.
What Happened
On June 18, 2025, the County detected ransomware on our computer network. We immediately launched an investigation with assistance from expert cybersecurity and data forensics consultants to secure our network and investigate the scope of the incident. We also alerted federal law enforcement. As part of the ongoing investigation, we determined that the cyber criminals took certain data from our network, which included protected health information. The affected information relates to individuals who received or are receiving services from the County Health and Human Services Department. Our investigation is ongoing, and we are conducting a thorough review of the contents of the data to establish what information may have been involved, who may have been affected, and where those people reside so that we can provide notice. Upon completing our review, we will provide the required written notice to individuals and will offer complimentary credit monitoring services where appropriate.
What Information Was Involved
Although the investigation is still ongoing, at this time we have determined that the protected health information may contain information relating to services individuals received from the County Health and Human Services Department.
What We Are Doing About It
As soon as we learned about this incident, we immediately worked with our team to secure our network and begin an investigation. We have notified federal law enforcement and will cooperate with any law enforcement investigation. To further enhance our security and to help prevent similar occurrences in the future, we have taken or will be taking the following steps:
- Deployed security tools to enhance detection and accelerate response to cyber incidents;
- Actively monitoring our network using end point detection tools to help ensure containment; and
- Conducting an enterprise-wide password reset.
Additionally, the County notified the United States Department of Health and Human Services.
What You Can Do
We recommend that you take the following preventative measures to help detect and mitigate any misuse of your information:
- Remain vigilant for incidents of fraud and identity theft by regularly reviewing your account statements, free credit reports, and Explanation of Benefits (EOB) forms for any unauthorized or suspicious activity. If you notice any health care services listed in your EOB that you did not receive, you should contact your health plan or doctor. Information on additional ways to protect your information, including how to obtain a free credit report and free security freeze, can be found at the end of this notice
- Report any incidents of suspected identity theft to your local law enforcement, state Attorney General, and the major credit bureaus.
For More Information
The privacy and security of your information is very important to the County, and we remain committed to protecting it. If you have any questions or concerns about this incident, you may call us at 507-437-9700 between 8:00 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday, excluding major holidays.
Mower Information About Identity Theft and Ways to Protect Yourself