US' Planned Parenthood hit by data breach involving about 400,000 patients in LA

The data of Planned Parenthood, a nonprofit organization in Los Angeles, US was allegedly breached, involving about 400,000 patients. However, according to the organization, there is no evidence that the information was utilised "for fraudulent reasons." It further stated that the hacker implanted a computer virus and "exfiltrated" files comprising patient names and addresses, insurance and medical information, including therapies they may have undergone. The data was breached from October 9 to 17. "Patients are encouraged to review statements from their healthcare providers or health insurers and contact them immediately if they see charges for services they did not receive,” the branch said in a statement, reported the Associated Press (AP). 

The technique involved ransomware, which allows hackers to lock a company out of its own computer network until a ransom is paid, but the organization didn't indicate whether the money was paid right away. It further informed that the matter is currently under investigation. The news came a day before the Supreme Court of the US heard arguments that might determine whether the nationwide right to abortion is upheld. The court's landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 legalised abortion across the US, and its Planned Parenthood v. Casey decision in 1992 upheld Roe. 

It is important to mentioned here that Planned Parenthood has been hacked earlier too. Hackers uploaded the names and other information of hundreds of Planned Parenthood staff online in 2015. Besides, the Metropolitan Washington branch disclosed this year that patient and donor information was breached in 2020. 

Israel's Machon Mor medical institute data hacked

Meanwhile, in a separate incident last month, an Iran-based hacking group, Black Shadow leaked the whole database of personal information from Israel's Machon Mor medical institute, including medical records of around 2,90,000 patients. The information was made public when a ransom demand of $1 million in digital money was not met, reported The Times of Israel. The report stated that the Machon Mor medical institute database, which contained information on medical treatments, appointments, test results, and immunisation for around 2,90,000 persons, was published on November 2. In addition, CyberServe, an Israeli internet hosting company, was hacked by the Black Shadow group last month, causing its servers and a number of websites to go down.

(With AP inputs)

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