Augusta - More computer trouble at the Department of Health and Human Services. According to DHHS officials the confidential information of 79 people who applied for public assistance was mailed out to the wrong addresses.

Dale Denno Director of the Office For Family Independence says the problem started in December, but no one came forward until June when someone said they'd received someone else's information. "We had heard not a word up until then which is strange in a way," Denno said Thursday.

A computer glitch is being blamed. According to Denno, DHHS generates thousands of letters communicating with Mainers every month. They also generate information that's supposed to be uploaded to people's personal files. "In certain rare circumstances it would take that information that was intended to be maintained in the file and send it out to somebody randomly," Denno said.

The information included social security numbers and, in rare instances, bank account details.

Denno says it now knows everyone who was impacted. "Whose data was breached. What data was breached. To whom was it sent. We got all of that information organized, we had been preparing for this. So then we assigned a group of people to do the phone calling. First to the people whose data had been breached, and then to the people who had received it."

The people who had their information breached have been offered free identity theft insurance and credit monitoring.

Denno says the problem is now fixes and they've contacted most of the people affected.

Denno also stresses this current glitch is totally unrelated to the past computer problem. Last year more than 20,000 Mainers remained on the MaineCare rolls, despite the fact they were ineligible to receive benefits.

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