Planned Parenthood in Los Angeles, California announced a data breach following a ransomware attack that occurred in October 2010. The security breach could have exposed the personal health information of approximately 400,000 patients.
According to a data breach notification sent to impacted patients, the cyberattack allowed threat actors to steal files from the Planned Parenthood network before the organization could take their systems offline.
On November 4, Planned Parenthood determined that the stolen files contained patients’ personal information, including the following:
- Address
- Health insurance information
- Date of birth
- Clinical information (diagnosis, procedure, prescription information)
In a statement to the Washington Post, who first reported the breach, a Planned Parenthood spokesperson said the leaked files contained the personal data of approximately 400,000 patients.
Ransomware attacks may develop over time while hackers steal or encrypt files. They may harvest the data, hold it ransom or sell it on the dark web.
The Lyon Firm is investigating the Planned Parenthood data breach and is actively involved in numerous data privacy cases and has experience filing data security claims on behalf of plaintiffs nationwide.
