Feb 14, 2025 | Safety and Security
What occurred?
In June 2023, a third-party vendor notified PPL Electric Utilities that the vendor was impacted by a widespread breach of the MOVEit file transfer software that they and thousands of organizations use. Please know, the initial MOVEit software vulnerability was resolved by the vendor in 2023.
Importantly, data exposed did not include banking or credit card information, social security numbers or account passwords, as no such information is shared with this vendor. It did not extend beyond basic information such as name, address, phone number, email address and utility account number.
This issue is completely unrelated to PPL’s systems and critical infrastructure across all our service areas.
Why are you hearing about this now?
While no sensitive information was released, we are communicating with you as recent media reports may cause concern or confusion.
If you use an identity theft or dark web monitoring service, you may receive an alert that your data was exposed. Please be assured, no banking or credit card information, social security numbers or account passwords were exposed.
What can you do?
As always, we urge you to stay vigilant and always be on the lookout for scams. A few tips to keep in mind:
PPL will never:
- Demand immediate payment through phone, email, or in person.
- Request personal financial information, such as credit/debit card or checking account numbers.
- Require payment using prepaid cards, gift cards, cryptocurrency, or wire transfers via third-party payment apps.
- Threaten to shut off your service unless immediate payment is made.
If You Suspect a Scam:
- Stop and Think: Pause before making any payment or sharing personal information.
- Contact Authorities: Report the scam to your local police department or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
- Report to PPL Electric Utilities: Call 1-800-342-5775 to report the scam attempt.
For more scam prevention tips, visit our website.
Sep 7, 2023 | Safety and Security
September is National Preparedness Month, and amid an active storm season, we encourage you to plan ahead so you’re ready if an emergency strikes.
“This year, we have already experienced 36 storms across the regions we serve,” said Sal Salet, vice president of Distribution Operations. “While we continually maintain and upgrade our grid to better withstand more severe storms, we recommend all of our customers plan ahead to be ready for any emergency.”
Here are a few steps to get you started:
- Make a plan: Develop an emergency plan including everyone in your household so you’ll know how and where to meet, how you’ll contact each other and what to do in different situations.
- Be prepared: Prepare an emergency kit, including non-perishable food, water, medication, first aid supplies and any pet supplies you may need. Also include batteries and battery-operated flashlights. Store your emergency kit in one location that’s easy for everyone to find and preferably in an air-tight container.
- Stay Informed: We use several ways to communicate before storms and during emergencies. One way to stay informed is through alerts. Sign into your online account and adjust your alert preferences at pplelectric.com/alerts. You can choose to receive a phone call, email, or text message for status updates about an outage. For more tips on reporting outages and staying safe during a storm, visit pplelectric.com/outage.
We also take storm-prep very seriously and constantly prepare for emergencies. Here are a few things we do to prevent outages:
- Ongoing investments: Throughout the year, we make key investments to strengthen our electric system to be more resilient against severe weather. This work includes investments in grid automation, comprehensive line clearing and enhancements to power lines, poles, and other equipment. Since 2015, our smart grid technology alone has avoided more than 1.7 million outages.
- Training and safety measures: Our teams are constantly training on storm-response techniques and practicing how we respond and dispatch crews. Leading up to severe weather, our team monitors the weather and its impact across surrounding regions so we already have crews ready to respond when the storm hits.
- Mutual response: We maintain mutual assistance relationships that provide access to critical resources and hundreds of crews in 29 states and four provinces in Canada when mobilizing for potential large-scale restoration efforts.
“Our customers are always top priority,” said Salet. “That remains true whether we are restoring power after a storm or planning investments to our grid.”
Don’t wait for a storm to hit. Use National Preparedness Month as a reminder to make a plan, create a kit and be prepared for any type of emergency. Stay safe!
Sep 1, 2022 | Customer Service
Sharing your personal information anywhere can be a risk. But we have a simple and safe solution. Sign up for paperless billing on our secure website.
- Safeguard your personal information and prevent identity theft.
- Avoid checks and envelopes, which can be stolen or lost.
- View, download and print one year of bills at any time.
- Never miss a payment with bill due reminder alerts.
It’s not just about security. Paperless billing is also better for the environment, and it’ll save you time and money.
Sign up today at pplelectric.com/paperless.
Aug 4, 2022 | Safety and Security
Scammers often pick up their efforts during times of high inflation. They’ll tell you that if you switch and purchase your electricity supply from them, you’ll save tons of money. Sometimes, they aren’t being truthful. We want you to stay vigilant and know how to identify scammers, so you can stop them in their tracks.
Some of the deceptive and misleading tactics that energy marketing scammers use include:
- Misrepresenting themselves
- Misrepresenting supplier status
- Misrepresenting facts
- Misrepresenting pricing
- Misrepresenting their true intentions
We want to help keep you and your personal information safe. Here’s what you need to know:
- We DO NOT market or sell supplier services by phone or door-to-door.
- Don’t always trust your caller ID.
- Only return messages and calls from us at our official phone number: 1-800-342-5775.
- Create an online account.
- Update your account with a security PIN or password and NEVER give it to anyone who calls you.
- Keep your email address and phone number up to date.
Find out more details about how to protect yourself at pplelectric.com/scams.
Aug 26, 2021 | Safety and Security
Oftentimes, door-to-door scammers will misrepresent themselves. Not only their identity, but they will also misrepresent what their true intentions are. In those situations, scammers are generally looking to obtain your personal and account information to switch your electricity supplier without your knowledge.
We deliver your electricity, but in Pennsylvania, you can shop around for the supplier that’s right for you. While most suppliers market their services appropriately, some use fraudulent tactics – like misrepresenting themselves as PPL or offering too-good-to-be-true deals – to scam you out of your hard-earned money.
We do not sell supplier services door-to-door. So, if a solicitor is claiming to represent PPL Electric Utilities, you can be sure they are attempting to fool you.
If you want to listen to what the door-to-door salesperson has to say, you can, but the best place to start the shopping process is on our website, pplelectric.com/shopsmart, or by visiting the Public Utility Commission’s site at PAPowerSwitch.com.
Here are some tips to help you identify and slam the door on scammers:
- Scammers will generally pressure you to act fast, don’t let fast-talking push you to give up personal information or make a decision on the spot.
- If someone knocks, claims to be from PPL, and asks for money or for you to sign a contract, don’t do it. We never solicit services or demand payments door-to-door. Tell them you don’t have time to talk and that you’ll be calling us later to discuss.
- Remember, if something doesn’t seem right when talking to a door-to-door salesperson, or something seems too good to be true, it likely is.
- Know what questions to ask when switching suppliers: What is the length of the agreement? Is there an automatic renewal? Are there cancellation, change, or penalty fees? Is this an introductory rate? What is the price after the introductory period?
- Spread the word. If a scammer tries to target you, they may also try to target others in your community. Let neighbors know they should keep an eye out for scammers.
- Creating an online account is a great way to avoid scams. You can check your account information and current electricity supplier at any time, from any device at pplelectric.com.
