For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANADVISERdash daily newsletter.
Compliance May 27, 2025
Data Breach at Alera Exposed Data of More Than 10,000 Individuals
An external breach, which occurred last summer, may have exposed retirement plan participants’ personal data, such as Social Security numbers and bank information.
Reported by Remy Samuels
The Alera Group reported on Wednesday an external system data breach from 2024 that impacted 10,874 individuals, according to a notice filed with the Maine attorney general.
According to the firm, it confirmed on April 28 that personal information may have been removed from its network as a result of unauthorized access to the Alera Group technology environment that occurred between July 19, 2024, and August 4, 2024.
Upon learning of the unauthorized activity in August 2024, according to the Alera Group, it immediately began an investigation and reviewed the data possibly involved to determine whether it contained sensitive information and to whom that information related.
The types of affected information may include: names, addresses, demographic information, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, driver’s licenses, financial account or credit card information, passport information and medical information, according to the filing.
Information related to certain current and former Alera Group employees and their dependents may have also been affected in the incident, the company stated.
The Alera Group is notifying potentially affected individuals as an employer, as a direct provider of services and on behalf of certain clients, business partners and providers.
The firm has also completed an investigation with the assistance of third-party cybersecurity specialists and has implemented “additional cybersecurity measures” to further protect itself.
The Alera Group encourages potentially affected individuals to heighten their awareness and “remain vigilant” over the next 12 to 24 months to protect against identity theft and fraud by reviewing account statements and explanations of benefits, monitoring free credit reports for suspicious activity and reporting any suspected identity theft to the appropriate financial institution.
More information on how individuals can protect personal information was provided on the Alera Group’s website.
The insurance brokerage firm, which also has a large retirement plan business, acquired two Massachusetts-based companies in October 2024: Berkshire Fairfield Agency and Scarafoni Financial Group. The acquisitions were aimed at bolstering Alera Group’s capabilities in employee benefits, property and casualty insurance, and retirement plan services.
It also acquired Minnesota-based Advanced Capital Group Inc., an institutional investment consultant specializing in employer-sponsored retirement plans, in September 2024. The acquisition was the largest yet for Alera Group’s retirement plan services division and brought $24 billion in retirement plan and wealth assets.
As of February, Alera Group’s retirement plan division holds $40 billion in assets under management.
