A recent article on the cybersecurity risks posed by mergers and acquisitions begins: When companies merge, it creates significant cybersecurity challenges in two main ways: firstly, challenges arise in integrating disparate security infrastructures, and secondly, an M&A transaction brings together diverse organizational cultures which presents its own challenges from a cyber perspective. Yet the limited…
In July 2021, Chelan Douglas Health District in Washington experienced a data breach. They disclosed the breach to the public in March 2022, surprisingly patting themselves on the back for completing their investigation in 6-7 months. A number of media reports indicate that the breach reportedly affected almost 109,000 patients, but the breach was reported…
HHS OCR announced a second ransomware investigation settlement today. This one involved Bryan County Ambulance Authority (BCAA), a provider of emergency medical services in Oklahoma. The Bryan County Ambulance Authority breach occurred in November 2021, but was only first reported to HHS on May 18, 2022. It affected 14,273 patients. HHS’s press release (below) notes…
How many data breaches can an entity have before either some regulator steps in with a corrective action plan or something happens to reduce the likelihood of more breaches? Consider the following: Breach # 1 On February 22, 2022, Minuteman Senior Services (MSS) identified suspicious activity related to an employee’s email account. According to the notification…
A press release from HHS OCR today announces a settlement with Plastic Surgery Associates of South Dakota. In July 2017, DataBreaches reported that the entity was notifying 10,200 patients after a ransomware incident. Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office for Civil Rights (OCR), announced a settlement with Plastic Surgery…
On October 18, Summit Pathology and Summit Pathology Laboratories (“Summit”) in Colorado notified HHS of a breach affecting 1,813,538 patients. By October 21, personal injury law firms started reporting on the breach and recruiting potential plaintiffs. On October 22, Karen Alexander became aware that Summit had sent her and her family members notifications to their…