The California Office of the Attorney General disclosed a data breach affecting Farmers Insurance, which transpired on **March 31, 2019**, but was reported later on **December 3, 2019**. The incident involved unauthorized access to sensitive customer data, including **names, Social Security numbers, and medical history**. While the precise number of impacted individuals remains undisclosed, the exposure of such highly personal information poses severe risks, including identity theft, financial fraud, and privacy violations. The breach underscores vulnerabilities in Farmers Insurance’s data protection measures, potentially eroding customer trust and triggering regulatory scrutiny. Given the nature of the compromised data—particularly medical records and Social Security numbers—the long-term repercussions for affected individuals could be substantial, ranging from targeted phishing attacks to fraudulent credit applications. The delay in public disclosure further compounds concerns about transparency and incident response protocols within the organization.
Source: https://oag.ca.gov/ecrime/databreach/reports/sb24-184787
TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/farmers-insurance
"id": "far154082025",
"linkid": "farmers-insurance",
"type": "Breach",
"date": "3/2019",
"severity": "85",
"impact": "4",
"explanation": "Attack with significant impact with customers data leaks"{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': 'Unknown',
'industry': 'Insurance',
'location': 'California, USA',
'name': 'Farmers Insurance',
'type': 'Insurance Company'}],
'data_breach': {'number_of_records_exposed': 'Unknown',
'personally_identifiable_information': ['names',
'Social Security '
'numbers'],
'sensitivity_of_data': 'High',
'type_of_data_compromised': ['Personally Identifiable '
'Information (PII)',
'Protected Health Information '
'(PHI)']},
'date_publicly_disclosed': '2019-12-03',
'description': 'The California Office of the Attorney General reported a data '
'breach involving Farmers Insurance on December 3, 2019. The '
'breach occurred on March 31, 2019, and involved unauthorized '
'access to customer information, including names, Social '
'Security numbers, and medical history. The exact number of '
'individuals affected is unknown.',
'impact': {'data_compromised': ['names',
'Social Security numbers',
'medical history'],
'identity_theft_risk': 'High (PII exposed)'},
'references': [{'source': 'California Office of the Attorney General'}],
'regulatory_compliance': {'regulations_violated': ['Potential HIPAA (PHI '
'exposure)',
'Potential state data '
'breach laws (e.g., '
'California Civil Code § '
'1798.82)'],
'regulatory_notifications': ['California Office of '
'the Attorney '
'General']},
'title': 'Farmers Insurance Data Breach (2019)',
'type': 'Data Breach'}