State Says It Has Fixed Data Glitch in IES System

By Benjamin Cox on September 23, 2021 at 8:52am

The State of Illinois said yesterday it has fixed a glitch in two computer programs that allowed unauthorized people to view records.

The problem occurred when people were removed from access to accounts under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program. The glitch allowed those individuals to continue to access the accounts and see benefits and personal information after they had been deleted.

The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the Illinois Department of Human Services in conjunction with the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology says that the State of Illinois Integrated Eligibility System glitch was first found on November 24, 2020.

Officials from the departments say that the issue was corrected in January, and after continued monitoring, have not been able to identify any instances of fraud. Individuals who were affected were sent a notice in the mail on September 9th with a help line number. The help line will remain open until December 8th.

The glitch is being revealed now under a recently enacted state law requiring public notice of such data breaches and incidents.