FARMINGTON, Conn. (WTIC) – A data breach at UConn Health could potentially impact thousands of patients.
In a statement released Friday, UConn Health announced they are notifying patients potentially impacted by the breach where a “phishing attack” conducted by an unauthorized third party illegally accessed a number of employee email accounts.
Officials say they immediately took action by securing the impacted accounts to prevent further unauthorized access and notified law enforcement. A leading forensic security firm was also hired to investigate and search for any personal information in the email accounts.
In late December, the investigation revealed that some accounts contained personal information, including names, dates of birth, address and billing information. Some individual’s Social Security numbers were also contained in the accounts.
From a compromised email account, UConn Health determined 326,000 potentially impacted individuals. Social Security numbers were included for approximately 1,500 of those individuals.
Officials say they do not know for certain if any personal information was viewed or acquired and they are not aware of any instances of fraud/identity theft. They also note the incident had no impact on UConn Health’s computer networks or electronic medical record systems.
Notification letters are being sent to potentially impacted individuals, which contain the necessary steps moving forward to protect against fraud or identity theft. Additionally, UConn Health is providing free identity theft protection services to individuals whose Social Security numbers may be impacted.
They recommend patients regularly monitor credit reports and account statements. They add if anyone detects any suspicious activity to immediately contact law enforcement.
Anyone seeking more information can visit UConn Health’s website at health.uconn.edu/securityincident, or call the toll-free inquiry line from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. (EST) Monday through Friday at 1-877-734-5353.
