Erie Indemnity says it is facing system disruption and outages due to an 'information security event'

(The Insurer) - Erie Indemnity Company, which manages Erie Insurance, identified unusual network activity it determined to be the result of an information security event after facing system outages and disruptions, the company said in a June 7 8-K filing with the SEC.

In a notice on its website, Erie said it activated its incident response protocols, and that the company is working with law enforcement and is conducting a forensic analysis with the assistance of cybersecurity experts "to gain a full understanding of this event."

Erie did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Cyber Risk Insurer received an auto-response from the company saying the company was "facing delays in its email environment."

"During this outage, Erie Insurance will not contact customers by phone or email to request payments. As always, do not click on any links from unknown sources or share your personal information via phone or email," the notice on its website said.

The online notice did not indicate whether the outage was a result of a cyberattack.

"Erie’s local agents, claims, and customer care teams are directly supporting customers," the notice said.

"Policyholders who need to start a claim can contact their local agent or Erie’s First Notice of Loss team."

On Thursday, Cyber Risk Insurer exclusively reported that Philadelphia Insurance Companies (PHLY), a Tokio Marine subsidiary, is facing a ransomware attack resulting in a system outage ongoing since Tuesday.