Erie Insurance Restores Online Access for Customers; Still Working on Other Systems

Erie Insurance has reported that online account access for customers including bill pay has been restored in the latest update on its recovery from its network outage.

The insurer said the network and system outage it initiated on June 7 helped contain a threat. The insurer once again reported that “there is no evidence of ransomware and no indication of ongoing threat actor activity.”

The company has not acknowledged any data breach but said it is “working diligently to identify what, if any, data may have been affected.”

The work to restore full system functionality for local agents, claims, and customer care teams is “intentional, phased and prioritized to ensure we continue to do the right thing and put service above all else,” the compay stated.

Meanwhile, Philadelphia Insurance Companies is continuing its efforts to restore systems following its network outage.

Philadelphia Insurance disconnected its systems to contain the threat from suspicious activity it detected on June 9. Phone, email, and online applications have been affected by the outage.

Philadelphia said that “contrary to media reports, no systems were encrypted, and this was not a ransomware event.”

The insurer said most of its core business systems have been restored. Some Philadelphia employees across the country have regained some access to key systems, including email. “A full return to normal internal operations will take time, but we are working around the clock to get things back to normal for our agents and policyholders,” the insurer said.

If it determines that customer data was accessed, Philadelphia said it will advise those whose information was involved.

Insurance Sector Should Be on the Lookout for ‘Scattered Spider’ Hackers

While neither insurer has spoken of the source or extent of its cybersecurity incident, Google Threat Intelligence Group has said that the hacking group known as Scattered Spider appears to have switched focus from retailers to insurance companies, and is likely behind the Erie and Philadelphia events, as well as a possible data breach at insurer Aflac.