Stolen Hospital Laptop Contained 7K Patient Records

Identity theft and fraud cost Americans $1.52 billion last year, according to the Federal Trade Commission, and nearly 2 million complaints were registered in 2011. A recent security breach in Connecticut may end up adding to this disheartening statistic.

Hartford Hospital and VNA Healthcare announced last week that a stolen unencrypted laptop that contained thousands of patient records had been stolen, according to CMIO.

The stolen laptop was said to house 7,461 VNA patient records and nearly 2,100 Hartford Hospital patient records. The computer was stolen from the home of a contract employee conducting data analysis for the hospital.

Officials noted that the personal data and records were not yet misused. The typical organization loses five percent of its annual revenue to fraud, with a median loss of $160,000, according to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

If you or a loved one experienced a data breach, contact Sokolove Law for a free legal consultation and to find out if you may be able to pursue legal action. For legal help, call (800) 581-6358.

Tags: