Econsult suffers ransomware attack, exposing personal data

Econsult Solutions, an economic analysis and consulting company whose clients include the City of Philadelphia, Pew Charitable Trusts, and other major institutions in the region, has reportedly suffered a data breach that exposed employees’ financial information to hackers.

According to internal messages shared with Billy Penn, the company’s data is being held for ransom.

Current Econsult employees appear to have received an email from management about an “IT incident” that exposed the company’s data, including some workers’ 2022 W-2, with their social security number included, per the email.

It’s currently unclear whether data generated through the company’s many partnerships — including with city and state government — has been exposed in the ransomware attack.

Wendy Gabriele, Econsult’s chief administrative officer and treasurer, said she couldn’t get into specifics due to the company’s ongoing investigation, but shared the following statement:

“Earlier this month, ESI discovered a cybersecurity incident that temporarily impacted some of our network systems. We launched an investigation and are working diligently with the assistance of external experts to identify the nature and scope of information that may have been involved.

ESI takes data security and the protection of all data in our possession very seriously. We are in the process of providing appropriate notice to all clients and potentially affected individuals as we learn additional information.”

The City of Philadelphia is one of Econsult’s clients and was advised of the breach, according to city spokesperson Sarah Peterson, who noted that the information used to generate reports for the city is all publicly available.

“Econsult notified the city on June 27, 2023, regarding potential exposure,” Peterson said. “Econsult plans to keep the city posted as progress continues to fully resolve this matter.”

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