Sparta Community Hospital District

Sparta Community Hospital District in Illinois experienced a data breach when an unauthorized individual accessed an employee email account containing protected health information (PHI). The incident occurred between March 27 and March 28, 2023, and was discovered due to suspicious activity on the email account on March 28. The hospital launched an investigation and determined that the compromised information included patients’ names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, medical record numbers, physicians’ names, medical diagnoses, and limited treatment information. However, no financial information or Social Security numbers were affected. The exact number of patients impacted by the breach was not detailed, but the hospital has since secured the email account and is notifying all affected individuals[1][4].

The hospital has taken steps to prevent future breaches by securing the compromised email account and is in the process of notifying affected patients. It is important for individuals affected by such breaches to monitor their personal information and report any suspicious activity[1][4].

Citations:

1. https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/cybersecurity/illinois-hospital-says-hacker-accessed-employee-email-account.html
2. https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca7/16-4241/16-4241-2018-03-23.html
3. https://owlsports.com/news/2024/2/7/signing-day-live
4. https://www.scmagazine.com/brief/separate-breaches-impact-mercyone-other-health-providers
5. https://dph.illinois.gov/resource-center/news/2022/june/nursing-home-violations-for-first-quarter-of-2022-.html
6. https://www.washingtonpost.com
7. https://madisonrecord.com/stories/645515217-former-sparta-community-hospital-employee-alleges-retaliatory-discharge-over-osha-complaint
8. https://madisonrecord.com/stories?before=2023-07-11T11%3A02%3A21%2B00%3A00
9. https://atriumhealth.org
10. https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca7/21-2778/21-2778-2022-06-22.html
11. https://www.hipaajournal.com/peachtree-orthopedics-suffers-data-theft-and-extortion-incident/
12. https://www.labcorp.com
13. https://malware.news/t/separate-breaches-impact-mercyone-other-health-providers/70400
14. https://caselaw.findlaw.com/il-court-of-appeals/1523235.html
15. https://pekininsurance.com
16. https://casetext.com/case/jones-v-sparta-cmty-hosp/
17. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/09/magazine/united-arab-emirates-mohammed-bin-zayed.html
18. https://www.hipaaguidelines101.com/seven-healthcare-providers-report-data-breach-due-to-cyberattacks/
19. https://fadv.com
20. https://www.hospitalinspections.org/hospital/141349
21. https://www.blm.gov