Monthly Breach Deets: Extend Fertility Data Breach

A hacker gained access to Extend Fertility and potentially captured protected health information (PHI) from its patients. The investigation determined that the accounts were compromised on December 20, 2021, and this was the result of a ransomware attack.

According to HIPAA Journal, a total of 10,373 patients in New York City had been compromised. This cost Extend Fertility an estimated $2,807,947 in operational downtime, legal action, loss of data and reputational damage, according to eRiskHub.

This data breach contained the following PHI:

• Name
• Gender
• Address
• Phone Number
• Medical Insurance Information
• Date of Birth
• Health Insurance Information
• Prescription Information
• Medical Information

This data breach could have been prevented.

Cyber criminals continue to maximize their profits by exploiting every vulnerability. Any small or large ransomware attack can take down a business of any size in a matter of moments. Many times, businesses do not get overly concerned about a breach until it’s too late.

1. Prepare and educate every employee about ransomware and other breaches
2. Install commercial grade firewalls
3. Keep your security software current and up to date
4. Have a good backup, disaster and recovery plan to restore your data to the point just before the ransomware attack
5. Repeat steps above

VGM Forbin would be happy to consult you on security software and other ransomware security needs for your facility. Let us know if you'd like to schedule a free consultation with our experts today!