by KYW's Paul Kurtz

The personal information of millions of consumers may be at risk as a result of data security breaches at two financial institutions this year.

The first incident was reported back in February when Bank of New York Mellon discovered that unencrypted backup tapes with millions of customers' information had gone missing.

The information contained, at a minimum, Social Security numbers, names and addresses, and possibly bank account numbers and balances.

Then came word last month that Countrywide had arrested an employee for selling personal information to a third party. 

Nils Frederickson, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office, says they've been getting complaints from consumers for quite a while:

"Consumers began receiving notice about the BNY Mellon breach earlier this summer, and it's our understanding that the notification to consumers about the Countrywide breach has gone out within the last several days."

In both notices customers are being offered credit monitoring. Frederickson says if you've received a letter take that offer and keep a close eye on your credit report.

photo: KCBS