Prosser School District – Notice of Data Event.

March 21, 2025 – Prosser School District (“PSD”) is providing notice of an event that may affect some individual’s information. PSD is committed to the privacy and Security of the information in our care. Out of an abundance of caution, PSD is notifying potentially impacted individuals to inform them of this incident and steps individuals can take to help safeguard their information.

On July 3, 2024, PSD identified suspicious activity on our computer network and observed malware encryption impacting certain systems. We took quick steps to ensure the continued security of the network, restore systems safely, and investigate to understand what occurred. The investigation determined that an unknown actor accessed PSD systems between June 29, 2024 and July 3, 2024 and copied certain files from the network. As part of the investigation, PSD launched a thorough and comprehensive review of the accessible data to determine whether it contained any sensitive information and to whom that information belonged.

On February 21, 2025, we completed efforts to locate address information for identified individuals to provide notice directly to them. The information identified in this review includes individual’s names, dates of birth, student identification number(s), and medical/health information. This event did not involve student Social Security numbers. On March 21, 2025, PSD began notifying impacted individuals of the event.

PSD takes this event and the security of information in our care very seriously. Upon learning of the event, we responded quickly, confirmed the security of our network, restored our systems, and investigated to understand what occurred.  PSD also reported this event to law enforcement and are notifying relevant regulators, as required. As part of our ongoing commitment to information security, we reviewed our policies, procedures, and security tools to reduce the risk of a similar event occurring in the future.

If you have further questions, or believe you may be impacted by this event, please contact PSD’s dedicated assistance line at 1-800-939-4170, Monday through Friday from 6:00am Pacific Time to 6:00pm
Pacific Time, excluding major U.S. holidays. Our representatives are fully versed on this incident and can help answer questions you may have regarding the protection of your information.

 General Information

PSD encourages everyone to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud by reviewing your account statements and monitoring your free credit reports for suspicious activity and to detect errors. If you detect any suspicious activity on your account, you should promptly notify the financial institution or company with which the account is maintained. You also should promptly report any fraudulent activity or any suspected incidence of identity theft to proper law enforcement authorities, your state attorney general, and/or the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”).

You may obtain a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies once every 12 months by visiting http://www.annualcreditreport.com/, calling toll-free 1-877-322-8228, or by completing an Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348. You also can contact one of the following three national credit reporting agencies: 

You have the right to place a “security freeze” on your credit report, which will prohibit a consumer reporting agency from releasing information in your credit report without your express authorization. The security freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent. However, you should be aware that using a security freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in your credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit. Pursuant to federal law, you cannot be charged to place or lift a security freeze on your credit report. Should you wish to place a security freeze, please contact the major consumer reporting agencies listed above.

In order to request a security freeze, you will need to provide the following information:

1. Your full name (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III, etc.);

2. Social Security number;

3. Date of birth;

4. If you have moved in the past five (5) years, provide the addresses where you have lived over the prior five years;

5. Proof of current address, such as a current utility bill or telephone bill;

6. A legible photocopy of a government-issued identification card (state driver’s license or ID card, military identification, etc.);

7. If you are a victim of identity theft, include a copy of either the police report, investigative report, or complaint to a law enforcement agency concerning identity theft

As an alternative to a security freeze, you have the right to place an initial or extended “fraud alert” on your file at no cost.  An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer’s credit file. Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer’s credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer’s identity before extending new credit. If you are a victim of identity theft, you are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years.  Should you wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any one of the agencies listed below:

You can further educate yourself regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, security freezes, and the steps you can take to protect yourself by contacting the consumer reporting agencies, the Federal Trade Commission, or your state Attorney General.              

The Federal Trade Commission can be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580, www.identitytheft.gov, 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. You can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. You have the right to file a police report if you ever experience identity theft or fraud. Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, you will likely need to provide some proof that you have been a victim. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and your state Attorney General.