Matthew Sturvedant reports: A hard drive with seven years of personal and medical information on about 1.5 million Health Net customers, including 446,000 in Connecticut, was lost six months ago and was first reported Wednesday, state and company officials said. The insurance company informed the state attorney general’s office and the Department of Insurance Wednesday…
Author: Dissent
80,000 Mailers Sent Out With Recipients’ Social Security Numbers In Plain View
Ouch! Postcards sent out by the Universal American Action Network, a subsidiary of Universal American Insurance, had the recipients’ full Social Security Numbers in plain view. There were reportedly 80,000 postcards sent out last Friday to Universal clients around the country who are enrolled in their Medicare Advantage plan. WGAL reports: Universal American told News…
Health Net Loses Information for 450,000 Clients: AG
Health Net, whose motto is “A Better Decision,” may have made a very very bad decision in not informing consumers of a breach involving their protected health information and sensitive personal information. Leanne Gendreau reports: The personal information for almost half a million Connecticut residents could be at risk after a hard drive disappeared from…
NZ: Photos released after death may not be protected by privacy laws
Under U.S. privacy laws, HIPAA protections extend past death. The same does not appear to be true in New Zealand, however, as this report by NZCity suggests: The Privacy Commission is sympathising with the family of 103-year-old Myra Letts who claim her privacy was breached when a photo was taken of her in a rest…
DNA Testing Firm Goes Bankrupt; Who Gets the Data?
Kim Zetter reports: An Icelandic firm that offers private DNA testing to customers has filed for bankruptcy in the U.S., raising privacy concerns about the fate of customer DNA samples and records, according to the Times of London. DeCODE Genetics, a genetics research firm, began offering personalized DNA testing through its deCODEme website two years…
OH: Social security numbers found in area library books
Tim Miller reports: Folks have been warned about not giving out personal information, but never knew an old library book could hold clues to their identities. At the University of Toledo, books from the 1980s and 90s with readers’ social security numbers may still be in circulation. Today, when UT students check out a book,…