A data breach caused by a phishing scam led to the leak of 1,513 people's protected health information from Aging Partners, according to a press release from the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Four email accounts at Aging Partners, a department of the City of Lincoln that serves the senior population in the area, were compromised, leaking more than 46,000 individual emails.
For the 1,513 affected individuals, data including their name, address, date of birth, phone number, Social Security number, medical condition, medical information and more could be in the hands of the unknown user or users.
The breach occurred between May 18-21. It wasn't detected by the city's informational services department until May 25, at which point the city disconnected the accounts and issued new pass codes. Seven of the emails contained bank information or other financial information, the release said.
Randall Jones, director of Aging Partners, said a forensic software company was hired to examine the situation but couldn't determine whether any information was downloaded. Aging Partners also conducted an internal investigation of the 46,000 emails to determine which patients had been affected.
The agency is now in the process of informing affected patients of the leak and urging them to be diligent about watching their financial safety in the future. The city of Lincoln will provide professional credit monitoring to the seven patients whose financial information was leaked.Â
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Jones said the two-month delay in the city's knowledge of the scope of the breach and its disclosure of the information was due to the wait for information from the forensic software company and the internal investigation.Â
Those affected are encouraged to file a credit report, the release said, and place a fraud report on it to prevent improper use of information.Â
Jones said privacy is a top priority to Aging Partners, and they are working on ensuring this does not happen again by encrypting all internal emails and training staff on how to spot phishing emails in the future.Â
"It's very difficult to do," he said. "They often look very legitimate."
Aging Partners clients with questions are asked to contact Jones at 833-952-0001 or rsjones@lincoln.ne.gov .
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Reach the writer at 402-473-2657 or nmcconnell@journalstar.com .
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