Edmonds Beacon - Your Hometown News Source

Alderwood Water & Wastewater District has reported a data security incident at Automatic Funds Transfer Services, which it contracts with to handle mail billing and process paper check payments.

Edmonds drinking water is purchased from the district, which in turn sources its water from the city of Everett.

Alderwood Water & Wastewater District said in a news release it does not know the extent of the data breach, but said AFTS uses digitally scanned images of the check to process paper checks. It is unknown at this time whether these scanned copies of checks have been taken illegally from the network.

The district said customers who pay their utility bill by mailing a paper check should monitor their bank accounts for unusual activity and report anything suspicious to their bank right away. The district said it would not be using AFTS to handle mail billing or process mail check payments during the data security incident. The most immediate impacts to customers are a possible delay in processing check payments or a temporary disruption in viewing a PDF version of billing statements online.

Customers can go to http://www.bit.ly/3qiJSuz for more information.

The District’s retail service boundary covers approximately 44 square miles spanning from Puget Sound east beyond the Bothell-Everett Highway (State Route 527) and north from the Snohomish/King county line to just south of Paine Field. The service area encompasses the city of Brier, portions of Mill Creek, a portion of Bothell north of the Snohomish County line, Mukilteo south of Paine Field, portions of Lynnwood and unincorporated areas of Snohomish County.

The district sells wholesale water to the cities of Edmonds, Lynnwood, and Mountlake Terrace (which are wholly or partially within the district’s 51-square mile corporate boundary); the Mukilteo Water and Wastewater District, and the Silver Lake Water and Sewer District (which are outside the district’s corporate boundary).