While Alberta Blue Cross® administers a number of government-sponsored programs including the Coverage For Seniors Program and the Optical Assistance for Seniors Program, Alberta Blue Cross® is not involved in the administration of government-sponsored dental programs for low-income Albertans including the Dental Assistance for Seniors Program, and was not impacted by the data breach that was announced on August 10, 2023, by the ADSC.
The ADSC said an outside third party gained unauthorized access to a portion of its IT infrastructure, obtaining certain types of personal information relating to registrants enrolled in provincial government programs and dental providers. The impacted information includes names, birth dates, personal health numbers, addresses and potentially personal banking information. Corporate information of certain health providers was also impacted. In total, approximately 1.47 million individuals were compromised. According to the ADSC, of this number up to 7,300 records contained personal banking information.
We encourage individuals who have coverage through the government-sponsored Dental Assistance for Seniors Program or other programs administered by either the Alberta Dental Service Corporation or Quikcard to contact the ADSC as their personal information and personal financial data may have been compromised by the ADSC data breach. This means that personal information previously provided to the ADSC could be used for identity theft, financial fraud or health insurance fraud.
According to the ADSC, more information can be found on the ADSC website or by calling 1-833-545-2197. Those impacted by the Quikcard breach can find more information at quikcard.com/cyberincident.
The Government of Alberta is encouraging anyone who has been affected by this breach to remain diligent and not provide information about themselves to telemarketers or to online services that they do not know or trust. The government suggests affected individuals may want to obtain credit monitoring and identity theft prevention services.
Maintaining the security of our systems and networks is paramount for Alberta Blue Cross®. We have comprehensive measures in place to ensure the safety and integrity of our systems and data. We are committed to protecting the privacy of the information we are entrusted to hold on behalf of our customers and have extensive measures in place to do so.
