DataBreaches.Net

Menu
  • About
  • Breach Notification Laws
  • Privacy Policy
  • Transparency Report
Menu

Burglary at Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County compromises clients' personal and medical information

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Dissent

Lawyers are supposed to protect clients’ information, but it seems the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County played with fire until its clients were burnt. During a burglary of their offices on August 12,  ten of their laptops with clients’ personal information were stolen.

In a letter to those affected,  M. Stacey Hawver, Executive Director, writes:

We believe that your personal information may have been stored on the stolen laptops. The personal information believed to be stored on the stolen laptops includes your name, Social Security number, date of birth, medical and health information.

Although those affected were offered some advice on placing fraud alerts on their credit files and advised to check  insurance Explanation of Benefits forms, they were not offered any free services.

Nor, it seems, were they given any explanation as to why all these laptops weren’t  encrypted. Hawver writes:

 We are sorry that this incident occurred and want to assure you we are carefully reviewing our procedures and practices to minimize the risk of recurrence.

Where was the careful review and security before the incident? And will they now encrypt client files? Don’t legal aid clients have enough problems without their information being put at risk by inadequate security?

A copy of the notification letter with the enclosure can be found on the California Attorney General’s web site.

UPDATE:  HealthITSecurity.com obtained additional information on the organization’s HIPAA status. Read their follow-up here.

No related posts.

Category: Health Data

Post navigation

← Privacy breaches in VA health records wound veterans
Huge Leak Of Documents Leaked For #OpGoldenDawn By #Anonymous →

Now more than ever

"Stand with Ukraine:" above raised hands. The illustration is in blue and yellow, the colors of Ukraine's flag.

Search

Browse by Categories

Recent Posts

  • Ex-student charged with wave of cyber attacks on Sydney uni
  • Detaining Hackers Before the Crime? Tamil Nadu’s Supreme Court Approves Preventive Custody for Cyber Offenders
  • Potential Cyberattack Scrambles Columbia University Computer Systems
  • 222,000 customer records allegedly from Manhattan Parking Group leaked
  • Breaches have consequences (sometimes) (1)
  • Kansas City Man Pleads Guilty for Hacking a Non-Profit
  • British national “IntelBroker” charged with causing $25 million in damages; U.S. seeks his extradition from France
  • France issues press statement about arrest of ShinyHunters members
  • Patients Allege Home Delivery Pharmacy Failed to Timely Notify Them of Data Breach
  • Hackers breach Norwegian dam, open valve at full capacity

No, You Can’t Buy a Post or an Interview

This site does not accept sponsored posts or link-back arrangements. Inquiries about either are ignored.

And despite what some trolls may try to claim: DataBreaches has never accepted even one dime to interview or report on anyone. Nor will DataBreaches ever pay anyone for data or to interview them.

Want to Get Our RSS Feed?

Grab it here:

https://databreaches.net/feed/

RSS Recent Posts on PogoWasRight.org

  • Microsoft’s Departing Privacy Chief Calls for Regulator Outreach
  • Nestle USA Settles Suit Over Job-Application Medical Questions
  • NY Attorney General James Affirms Hospitals Must Provide Access to Emergency Abortion Care
  • How Internet of Things devices affect your privacy – even when they’re not yours
  • Sky Views Personal Data as a Potential Weapon in IPTV Piracy War
  • Florida Used a Nationwide Surveillance Camera Network 250 Times To Aid in Immigration Arrests
  • Federal Court Strikes Down HIPAA Reproductive Health Care Privacy Rule

Have a News Tip?

Email: Tips[at]DataBreaches.net

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

Contact Me

Email: info[at]databreaches.net

Mastodon: Infosec.Exchange/@PogoWasRight

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

DMCA Concern: dmca[at]databreaches.net
© 2009 – 2025 DataBreaches.net and DataBreaches LLC. All rights reserved.