Andrews McMeel Universal Data Breach: What You Need to Know

What Happened?

On March 31st, 2023, Andrews McMeel Universal (AMU), a leading publisher of comics, humor books, and educational materials, announced that it had experienced a data breach. The breach exposed the personal information of over 400,000 customers, including names, addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers.

How Did It Happen?

The breach was caused by a "phishing" attack, in which a scammer sent an email to AMU employees that appeared to be from a legitimate source. The email contained a link to a fake website that looked like the AMU login page. When employees entered their credentials, they were stolen by the scammer.

What Information Was Exposed?

The following information was exposed in the breach:

Names

Addresses

Phone numbers

Email addresses

Dates of birth (for some customers)

What Should You Do?

If you are a customer of AMU, you should take the following steps to protect yourself:

Change your password immediately.

Monitor your credit reports for any unauthorized activity.

Be aware of phishing scams and do not click on links or open attachments from unknown senders.

What Is AMU Doing?

AMU is taking the following steps to address the breach:

Notifying all affected customers.

Offering free credit monitoring services to affected customers.

Working with law enforcement to investigate the breach.

Improving its security measures to prevent future breaches.

Conclusion

The AMU data breach is a serious reminder of the importance of cybersecurity. All businesses, large and small, need to take steps to protect their customer data from hackers. Customers also need to be aware of the risks of phishing scams and take steps to protect themselves.

Additional Resources

How to Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams

IdentityTheft.gov