DataBreaches.Net

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

Another class action lawsuit against Empress EMS filed over July ransomware attack

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Dissent

Another lawsuit has been filed in the wake of a ransomware attack on a New York  ambulance service. Now we hear that the victim paid ransom. Will it make a difference?

Firehouse reports:

A lawsuit has been filed against Empress Ambulance in New York after hackers accessed patient information.

According to the class action lawsuit filed in Manhattan Federal Court last week, Empress Ambulance – one of the state’s largest private ambulance services – failed to notify customers about the information that hackers were able to obtain.

Ransomware group Hive Gang, known for infiltrating security systems, hacked the system in May but it was not realized by Empress officials until July, according to the New York Post.

Read more at Firehouse.

This is not the first or only lawsuit filed in response to this incident.  As of today, there appear to be five potential class action lawsuits filed against Empress in the Southern District of New York resulting from this incident.

DataBreaches first reported on this incident in September after Empress disclosed the incident to HHS as affecting more than 318,000 patients.

Hive first revealed Empress as a victim on July 16, but susbsequently removed the listing.
It did not appear on their site for long, but this was Hive’s listing for Empress EMS on their dedicated leak site.

 

 

DataBreaches had first contacted Empress in July when Hive had made DataBreaches aware of the breach and sent DataBreaches a copy of their email communication to Empress with some data as proof.

Empress never responded to DataBreaches’ inquiries in July.

Empress eventually posted a statement on their web site, but there was no notice on their site in July that DataBreaches could find and no link from Empress’s home page to any notice.  A notice posted on their site in September had the same contents as what now appears on security incident page, but that first notice was created on September 2 and appeared at http://empressems.com/securitynotice.pdf. It was first archived by archived.org  on September 20. The archived version can be found here.

The notice makes no mention of ransom.

Because Hive never leaked all of Empress’s data, DataBreaches sent an inquiry to Hive this week asking them their intentions for the data. To this site’s  surprise, Hive responded that Empress had paid them.

DataBreaches sent an inquiry to Empress EMS with several questions in light of Hive’s statement to this site. One of the questions was whether Empress has told those affected that they paid ransom in an effort to protect their PHI and information.

Once again, Empress did not respond to inquiries.

Will having paid Hive (assuming for now that it’s true) help Empress defend against the lawsuits because they will claim they took steps to mitigate harm this way? Most suits seem to settle, and DataBreaches would expect this one to settle, too, but what impact will any ransom payment have on the litigation?

 

Category: Breach IncidentsHealth DataMalware

Post navigation

← Cyberattack at the Versailles hospital center: the trail of a LockBit usurper
NJ: With servers still offline, Hudson County Schools of Technology goes old-school low tech →

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

  • A state forensics lab was leaking its files. Getting it locked down involved a number of people.
  • CoinMarketCap Hacked, Scrambles to Remove Malicious Wallet Verification Popup
  • Montana Attorney General launches investigation into Lee Enterprises data breach
  • AT&T gets preliminary approval for $177 million data breach settlement
  • Aflac notifies SEC of breach suspected to be work of Scattered Spider
  • Former JBLM soldier pleads guilty to attempting to share military secrets with China
  • No, the 16 billion credentials leak is not a new data breach — a wake-up call about fake news (Updated)
  • Tonga’s health system hit by cyberattack (1)
  • Russia Expert Falls Prey to Elite Hackers Disguised as US Officials
  • Proposed class action settlement in In re Netgain Technology litigation

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

  • The Markup caught 4 more states sharing personal health data with Big Tech
  • Privacy in the Big Sky State: Montana’s Consumer Privacy Law Gets Amended
  • UK Passes Data Use and Access Regulation Bill
  • Officials defend Liberal bill that would force hospitals, banks, hotels to hand over data
  • US Judge Invalidates Biden Rule Protecting Privacy for Abortions
  • DOJ’s Data Security Program: Key Compliance Considerations for Impacted Entities
  • 23andMe fined £2.31 million for failing to protect UK users’ genetic data

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.