Customer information stolen from local Allstate branch

June 29, 2006

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A Huntsville branch of a major insurance company has a breach of security.

A computer stolen from the office, released valuable customer information, and now it's in the hands of a criminal.

The computer stolen came from an AllState office in Bailey Cove.

Naturally, clients are worried but AllState tells us they've taken the proper precautions in handling the matter.

Identity theft, stolen social security numbers, bad credit -- common concerns that may run only in the back of your mind.

But that worry comes to the forefront if you receive a letter in the mail telling you your information was stolen.

More than 27,000 AllState customers in Alabama got one says AllState Agent, Craig Wiggins, "Over Memorial Day weekend we had a theft of a computer."

A computer that contained valuable personal data including images of your insurance policies, correspondence and social security numbers, "We weren't really sure who exactly was on there, so instead of taking several months to try and figure all that out we decided the best thing to do would be to send it out to everybody that we thought would possibly be on that computer...I think we did the right thing."

The letter sent out specifically tells its clients, "The computer contained personal information including images of your policy and correspondence." It goes on to say, "At this time, we have no indication that any of the stolen information has been misused." In an effort to clear up confusion, AllState says identity theft 911 will be provided, "We've teamed up with a company that specializes in credit monitoring and credit restoration if that does become necessary."

Wiggins says more than likely, the information has already been cleared from the computer, but if you have any questions you can give AllState a call at 256-881-1100.

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