Cookware giant Meyer says cyberattack caused leak of employee SSNs, immigration status

February 23, 2022 TH Author

A ransomware attack on cookware giant Meyer Corporation has caused thousands of employee social security numbers and sensitive information to be leaked.

The company filed paperwork with the Attorney General offices in California and Maine, notifying both that the information of 2,747 employees was involved in the attack. The pots and pans manufacturer reported more than $128 million in sales in 2021.

In notification letters sent to victims, the company said the attack began “on or around October 25, 2021” and involved driver’s licenses, passports, Permanent Resident Cards and information regarding immigration status, among a host of sensitive information.

Employees working for Meyer subsidiaries like Blue Mountain Enterprises, Hestan Commercial Corporation, Hestan Smart Cooking and Hestan Vineyards were also affected.

“Meyer was the victim of a cybersecurity attack by an unauthorized third party that impacted our systems and operations. Upon detecting the attack, Meyer initiated an investigation with the assistance of our cybersecurity experts, including third-party forensic professionals. On or around December 1, 2021, our investigation identified potential unauthorized access to employee information,” the California-based company said.

“The types of personal information that may have been accessed during this incident will depend on the types of information you have provided to your employer, but may include: first and last name; address; date of birth; gender; race/ethnicity; Social Security number; health insurance information; medical condition(s) and diagnoses; random drug screening results; COVID vaccination cards and status; driver’s license, passport, or government-issued identification number; Permanent Resident Card and information regarding immigration status; and information regarding your dependents (including Social Security numbers), if applicable that you may have provided to the company in the course of your employment.”

Victims of the attack and their dependents are being offered two years of free identity protection services.

The company would not confirm whether it was a ransomware attack, but the Conti ransomware gang added the company to its list of victims in November. The leak site had about about 245 MB of data, representing 2% of what Conti claimed to have stolen.

The ransomware group never updated the entry.