Dear Valued Customer,
We are reaching out to inform you of a nationwide cybersecurity event that has impacted the services of our billing statement vendor, Change Healthcare. Your trust and the security of your information are of the utmost importance to us. We want to ensure that we communicate transparently about the situation and the steps we are taking in response.
What happened?
Change Healthcare sends about 2,000 billing statements a day, electronically and in the mail, for Chelan PUD. On February 21, Change Healthcare experienced a cybersecurity event that widely affected the health sector, including billing, print and mailing services for Chelan PUD. As a result, billing statements from Chelan PUD may be late this month. This event did not impact Chelan PUD’s computer systems.
What information was involved?
To facilitate the billing process, Chelan PUD uploads customer name, mailing address, services taken, amount owed, due date, and Chelan PUD account number to this vendor. Chelan PUD is investigating whether any of that information was compromised. Change Healthcare does not have access to payment method information or other sensitive, personally identifiable information.
What are we doing?
Our dedicated teams have been working tirelessly to ensure the secure delivery of your billing statements. Here’s what you can expect from us:
If your normal bill was delayed, your next few billing statements will arrive by USPS mail and will look different.
Auto-pay customers: Your printed statement is for information purposes only. Your automatic payment will continue to be deducted as usual. For some, the timing of your auto-pay deduction may be delayed.
We will adjust your bill due date to correspond with the new issuance date. Late fees will not be assessed unless payment is late based on the new billing date.
Customers can continue to pay existing bills as normal including paying online, via mail, or at one of the payment kiosks and drop boxes in Leavenworth, Chelan, or Wenatchee.
Customers cannot access online billing statements, regardless of when they were sent.
What can you do?
If you typically receive communications from the PUD electronically, please ensure we have your current mailing address. The current account holder can update this on our website at chelanpud.org/updatemyinfo, or by calling our Customer Relations team. In this call you will be asked to verify your identity.
We always recommend staying vigilant and reporting any suspicious activity related to your account. Our representatives will never ask for sensitive information, such as passwords, birth dates, or social security numbers unless you call us directly, nor do we request alternate forms of payment, such as wire transfer, cash cards, gift cards, etc. If you are in doubt, please contact our Customer Relations team directly.
Here are a few ways to protect your information.
- Verify: If you receive a suspicious call, email, or text that appears to be from Chelan PUD, do not respond directly. Instead, contact our Customer Relations team using the contact information on our official website at chelanpud.org.
- Report: If you encounter a potential scam, please report it to our Customer Relations team. This allows us to investigate and take necessary actions to protect all customers.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding and patience. Our team is working diligently to minimize any impact on you and to uphold the trust you have placed in us.