WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.— After a recent investigation by CBS12 News I-Team regarding the 2022 cyber attack on Tenet Hospitals, HCA Healthcare, a hospital ownership group with local branches, has confirmed that a significant amount of patient information has been stolen.
The hacker responsible for the breach has threatened to sell the compromised patient health information (PHI) on the dark web unless a ransom is paid by the company. HCA Healthcare estimates that approximately 11 million patients may have been affected by this breach.
According to an official statement from HCA Healthcare, the hack has not affected the normal functioning of hospital operations. However, the personal details of an undisclosed number of patients have been compromised, including their dates of birth, email addresses, phone numbers, gender, and appointment dates.
The hospitals owned by HCA Healthcare in the CBS12 News coverage area are as follows:
- HCA Florida JFK Hospital
- HCA Florida JFK North Hospital
- HCA Florida Palms West Hospital
- HCA Florida Highlands Hospital
- HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital
- HCA Florida Raulerson Hospital
- HCA Florida St. Lucie Hospital
The news release from HCA Healthcare states that clinical information, treatment records, diagnoses, payment information, driver’s license details, and social security numbers were not compromised in the hack.
According to the news release, it appears that the data breach occurred in an external storage location. The investigation is still ongoing, and currently, no evidence of any malicious activity has been discovered on HCA Healthcare’s networks or systems.
HCA Healthcare has assured that they will contact all affected patients through their healthcare group. However, they have not specified whether any patients from Florida had their information stolen.
Law enforcement has been informed about the cyber attacks, and HCA Healthcare has stated that credit monitoring services will be provided if necessary.
