The following is cross-posted from PHIprivacy.net: Under the provisions of the HITECH Act that went into effect several months ago, covered entities are required to report breaches involving the unsecured protected health information of 500 or more individuals to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Unfortunately, HHS watered down the…
Author: Dissent
PA: Malware opens door to possible information exposure
From Pennsylvania State University’s web site: A computer in the Dickinson School of Law that contained 261 Social Security numbers from an archived class list was found to be infected with malware that enabled it to communicate with an unauthorized computer outside the network. As soon as the University became aware of the malicious software…
(update) RockYou admits security snafu exposed email login details
John Leyden reports: Social media application developer RockYou has vowed to improve its security and apply encryption following a breach that exposed 32 million user login credentials to hackers. Sensitive login credentials – stored in plain text – were left open to attack as a result of an SQL injection vulnerability in RockYou’s website. In…
Northern Ireland’s Department of Finance and Personnel agrees to improve data security
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has found Northern Ireland’s Department of Finance and Personnel in breach of the Data Protection Act after approximately 37,000 people’s personal details were stolen. Stephen Peover, the Permanent Secretary at the Department of Finance and Personnel, has signed a formal Undertaking to improve data security. The ICO, the UK’s privacy…
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Health System patient records found in possession of ID thief
Linda Reilly reports: An alleged swindler involved in a sophisticated identity-theft ring involving personal information copied from hospital records is facing multiple identity theft and theft charges, police said. […] Shacoy McNish, 27, of the 400 block of Millbank Road, Upper Darby, was arrested in late November after allegedly purchasing almost $3,000 worth of merchandise…
Jpn: Guilty verdict upheld over leak / Court says psychiatrist broke confidentiality
The Osaka High Court on Thursday upheld a lower court ruling that found a psychiatrist guilty of leaking to a freelance journalist confidential investigation records of a fatal arson case involving a minor in Nara Prefecture. In October 2006, Morimitsu Sakihama, 51, gave Atsuko Kusanagi, 45, the investigation records on a then 16-year-old boy who…