Community Health Systems announced on Monday that cyber criminals hacked into its network and obtained data on approximately 4.5 million of its patients.
The information obtained includes patient names, Social Security numbers, physical addresses, birthdays and phone numbers, according to CNN. Patients who visited any of the system’s 206 hospitals in the past five years or were referred to them are affected.
Most of the hospitals involved are in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas, however, Community Health Systems operates in 29 states.
The attacks are believed to be the work of a group in China and occurred in April and June, according to KRQE. Sophisticated malware was used to obtain the patient information, and it has been removed from Community Health’s network. The FBI is working with the company to investigate the case.
Community Health System is notifying individuals affected by the data breach and offering ID theft protection services.
Get the latest Hospital Security news sign up for our: Hospital Security Newsletter
