Over 480k Patients Lose Medical Information to Hackers in Recent Intellihartx Breach

Nearly 500,000 people lost medical and personal data in a recent ransomware attack on Intellihartx. The company is known for handling collections and patient balances for medical companies. The organization suffered a breach that lost a substantial amount of protected information for different people, and that's a serious problem that should be addressed as soon as possible. 

How Did the Attack Occur?

The Intellihartx attack was possible through an exploit to Fortra's GoAnywhere file-transfer software service. The product is designed to send files securely between two parties. The C10P ransomware gang learned how to hack into the service and get access to the secure files being transferred. The gang has used that knowledge to exploit a variety of different companies, including Intellihartx. The attack was noted earlier this year, and it's one of many different breaches that resulted from vulnerability issues in the Go-Anywhere software product. 

What Information Was Viewed or Stolen?

During the breach, the hackers gathered birthdays, home addresses, Social Security numbers, first and last names, medical billing information, diagnoses and medication data, and insurance data. All these different data points can be assembled to hurt the individuals involved in significant ways. This is why it's so important for anyone involved to know their data was leaked and that they could be a risk.

How Did Intellihartx Admit to the Breach?

The company submitted a notice to the Maine Attorney General's office explaining the details of this breach. The notice talks about how more than 489,000 patients are involved in this breach and explains how GoAnywhere was used to obtain the stolen information. This notice is just the first of many notices put out by the company, and the organization is informing the individuals at risk as well.

What Will Become of the Stolen Information?

All of the stolen data from Intellihartx will be used to exhort the company into paying the ransom amount. If the company doesn't agree to pay the attackers, they will sell the information, give it away or trade it for other data they need. The ransomware gang will get as much as they can from the gathered data before moving on to new targets. While it's impossible to say specifically how the gathered data will be used, it's likely it will be leveraged in a harmful manner that earns money for the attackers in some way.

What Should Affected Parties Do in the Aftermath of the Breach?

If your data is exposed due to this Intellihartx attack, you must take immediate action to protect yourself. Begin by investing your time in exploring your credit history at the different bureaus. Use these records to help you determine when your information is being used in harmful ways. Move on to investing in credit monitoring services or putting a freeze on your credit. If you do these things, you will have more control over what happens with your information and how much risk you'll face overall.