October 11, 2023 |
Photo – Medicine Bow Town sign – Bigfoot99 file photo
In Medicine Bow, a mistake by a town hall worker may have put the personal information of town residents in danger.
During Monday’s Medicine Bow town council meeting, Museum Director Sharon Biamon told the council that she was concerned about a potential data breach at town hall. Biamon said the door to town hall was left open and residents’ sensitive information could have been stolen.
On September 14th, a member of town hall staff left the door of the building unlocked all night. A social media post about the event appears to confirm that Councilwoman Sharon Kahl was responsible. A post claiming to be from Councilwoman Kahl said, “It was me and I owned up to it!! Nothing was taken. Money was in safe. Police were called and a report made. I made a mistake and that’s not the first time that has happened. I worked till 6:00 that night getting payroll taxes [sic] taken care off, which are all done and balanced.”
Councilwoman Kahl has been acting as treasurer while the town searches for a person to fill the vacant full-time clerk treasurer position.
At Monday night’s town council meeting, Medicine Bow Marshal Roger Hawks said Carbon County Sheriff’s Office is handling the investigation.
Marshal Hawks said the likelihood that someone stole residents’ data while the town hall doors were unlocked is low, but not impossible. Biamon said the potential data breach is troubling.
Marshal Hawks said a former town employee had their personal data leaked online. The marshal said he doesn’t know if the incident is related to the town hall being left unlocked on September 14th.
Medicine Bow Museum Director Biamon said she received a call from her credit card company about possible fraudulent activity. Biamon said it is possible that scammers stole her personal information from the Medicine Bow town hall.
Marshal Hawks said when an information breach is detected, people are often offered identity theft prevention software from companies such as LifeLock. The marshal said scammers have realized that holding onto stolen data until a LifeLock subscription ends is more profitable than using the information immediately.
Councilman Trevor Strauch directed Mayor Bradley Buum to confer with Town Attorney Cameron Smith. Councilman Strauch said the town is obligated to inform residents about the potential data breach as quickly as possible.
Medicine Bow Public Works Director Brian Lashley assured the attendees that a repeat of September 14th was impossible. Lashley said he installed a self-locking device on the town hall door to prevent it from ever being left unlocked again.
