Quest Diagnostics, a US diagnostics company, has been the victim of a data breach. The data of approximately 11.9 million patients was exposed to hackers.
AMCA (American Medical Collection Agency) informed Quest -with which it collaborates- that a user had access to its systems in mid-May. This is an unauthorized user who was able to intercept personal data of patients such as social security numbers, medical information and financial data. There has been no information at this time about which financial data was leaked. However, it is known that the test results have not been compromised for a moment.
The breach occurred on AMCA's online payment page, which likely suggests it was premeditated. It wouldn't be the first time, as similar attacks have occurred at Ticketmaster and other companies.
So far, neither Quest nor AMCA know which patients were involved in the breach. However, they said they would immediately notify the public of any findings they come across. Quest said it has suspended use of AMCA and is using “forensic experts” to look into the matter.
Of course, this breach of personal and financial data has been taken up by cybercrime prosecution teams. At the same time, these teams are investigating ways to achieve the security of Quest's systems in the future. Electronic payments are now made in a different online environment.
“Hackers target financial companies because they often store sensitive financial information that can be turned into immediate profits,”Giovanni Vigna, co-founder of Lastline, told the Washington Post. “This type of information is much more lucrative than personal health information, which is currently not easily marketable by criminals.
In the very recent past, specifically last week, a large New York nonprofit organization related to home care services also fell victim to a data breach.
