One of the country’s largest health insurers, Anthem, has been the subject of what could be could be the largest breach of a health care company to date.
The cyberattack has compromised the personal information of customers, employees and the chief executive by breaching a database containing as many as 80 million records. The FBI is now investigating along with Mandiant, one of the world’s leading cybersecurity firms.
“Cyber attackers executed a very sophisticated attack to gain unauthorized access to one of Anthem’s IT systems and have obtained personal information relating to consumers and Anthem employees who are currently covered, or who have received coverage in the past,” company spokeswoman, Kristin Binns, said in a statement, according to NBC News.
With the Rise of AI, What IP Disputes in Healthcare Are Likely to Emerge?
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
The information accessed included names, Social Security numbers, birthdays, addresses, email and employment information, including income data. No credit card information or medical records are thought to be compromised. Social Security numbers and birth dates are more valuable on the black market than credit card numbers.
The attack, originally reported by the Wall Street Journal, was discovered Jan. 29 by a systems administrator when he noticed a database query was running with his identifier code. He had not initiated the query.
The affected plans from the attack include Anthem Blue Cross, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia, Empire Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Amerigroup, Caremore, Unicare, Healthlink and DeCare.
Joseph R. Swedish, Anthem’s chief executive, wrote to the company’s members saying he wanted “to personally apologize” for the security breach. He stated that his own personal information had been accessed as well and that they are “working around the clock to do everything we can to further secure your data.”
A Personalized Approach to Medication Nonadherence
At the Abarca Forward conference earlier this year, George Van Antwerp, managing director at Deloitte, discussed how social determinants of health and a personalized member experience can improve medication adherence and health outcomes.
In an effort to keep members informed, they have created www.AnthemFacts.com – where members can access information such as frequent questions and answers. Anthem has also created a toll-free number for members to call if they have questions about the cyberattack. That number is: 1-877-263-7995.
[Photo by Flickr user Matthew Hurst]
