A CenterPoint Energy data breach compromised the personal information of more than 1 million Texas customers, Attorney General Ken Paxton's office reported.
The state's data breach database lists 1,062,060 affected Texans, KPRC 2 reported. The exposed data includes names, addresses, Social Security information and driver's license numbers. CenterPoint provides the electric and natural gas infrastructure for portions of The Woodlands, according to The Woodlands Township, making the breach a direct concern for local customers.
Affected customers had not been notified at the time the report was filed. The state noted that the number of affected Texans and the notification status may be updated later.
CenterPoint first disclosed the incident in a Sept. 14 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). That filing said the company learned of an online post by a third party claiming to have obtained a dataset of customer information. CenterPoint did not reveal at that time how many customers were affected or what types of data were compromised.
CenterPoint has not confirmed whether the attorney general's report references the same breach disclosed in its SEC filing, the Houston Chronicle reported.
A CenterPoint spokesperson said Oct. 14 that the company "continues to actively investigate the cybersecurity incident disclosed last month," according to KPRC 2. The spokesperson said the company is working with outside experts to determine which customers will receive notifications.
Service was not disrupted. CenterPoint said its electric and gas delivery operations remain fully operational.
The Houston Chronicle reported that customers have filed class-action lawsuits against CenterPoint in multiple states over the breach.
What Woodlands residents should know
Under Texas law, companies must report breaches affecting at least 250 residents to the attorney general within 30 days. Affected individuals must be notified within 60 days of the company determining a breach occurred.
CenterPoint serves nearly 2.8 million metered electric customers across the Houston area and 1.9 million gas customers statewide, according to the company's website. The utility's electric delivery territory covers The Woodlands and surrounding suburbs. SecurityWeek reported that CenterPoint also serves customers in Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio, meaning the total number of people affected nationwide remains unclear.
Multiple cybersecurity outlets, including SecurityWeek and Fox News, recommend that CenterPoint customers watch for suspicious calls, texts or emails claiming to be from the utility, especially those asking to "verify" account details. Other precautions include reviewing bank and credit card statements for unfamiliar charges and considering a credit freeze with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion once CenterPoint confirms what data was exposed in individual cases.
CenterPoint's customer service lines for the greater Houston area are 713-207-2222 (electric) and 713-659-2111 (gas).
