The COF uses a third-party organization for data management. The company, Blackbaud, is one of the largest software providers for non-profit organizations. Recently, Blackbaud experienced a ransomware attack. COF donors, volunteers and friends may have heard of this, and we want you to understand what happened and how we are safeguarding your information.

On July 16 Blackbaud notified us that in May of 2020 its cybersecurity team identified and prevented a cybercriminal attack of its system. While the cyberattack was halted, a subset of data was affected. This attack had an impact on Blackbaud customers around the world, one of which was the COF.

COF data that may have been affected includes contact information, such as names, email addresses, telephone numbers and addresses. Blackbaud has assured us that data such as credit card numbers, usernames, and passwords were not compromised as these were encrypted. However, this does not have an impact on the COF anyway as we do not store credit card information, passwords, or other sensitive information in the database.

Blackbaud paid the cyber criminal’s ransom and relevant data was destroyed. Subsequently, Blackbaud has carried out an internal investigation with the assistance of outside cybersecurity experts and law enforcement and is confident that the data was destroyed and has not been further used or disclosed.

To be extra cautious, the COF consulted with our lawyers regarding this data breach as well. Our lawyers work with many health charities and were aware of this issue. Their review concludes that there is no significant risk to COF constituents whose data was stored in the Blackbaud system.

The Bottom Line:

We believe the data that was compromised was destroyed once the ransom was paid, and that it was not used in any way. Further, rest assured –WE DO NOT STORE financial data, like credit card or banking information. COF donors are not at risk of loss or misuse of that information from the COF.

The COF values all donors, volunteers and friends, and your privacy and trust are important to us. If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to contact us at 1 800 461 3639 or mailbox@canorth.org.