Thieves Hacked Into Patient Info at Hudson Valley Medical Offices

A Hudson Valley medical practice is warning that sensitive patient info may have been hacked.

Cyberattacks happen so frequently we've actually become accustomed to the news that our information has suddenly been stolen. Changing passwords and checking our credit history is something we've all learned to live with. While someone rifling through our online shopping history can be a bit unsettling, it's nothing compared to hackers stealing vital health records.

According to Orthopedic Associates of Dutchess County, that's exactly what happened earlier this spring when thieves gained unauthorized access into their patient database. The medical practice with five locations throughout Hudson Valley announced that "suspicious activity" alerted them to an attack on their systems.

On March 5, 2021, OADC became aware of suspicious activity relating to its systems and immediately launched an investigation to determine the nature and scope of the activity. OADC determined that an unauthorized actor gained access to certain OADC systems on or about March 1, 2021, encrypted certain systems, and claims to have removed and/or viewed certain files.

The medical practice says they were unable to determine just how much data was actually exposed, but hackers did have access to quite a bit of sensitive information. OADC says it's possible that a long list of data has been stolen from their patients. The stolen personal info could include names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, emergency contacts, patient identification numbers, medical record numbers, diagnosis information, health insurance numbers, payment details, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and treatment information.

OADC has notified the FBI and other agencies about the data breach and says they will continue to investigate the incident. In the meantime, the medical practice has set up a hotline for customers who are concerned about the incident. Patients can call (855) 246-9403 Monday through Friday from 9am to 11pm and on weekends from 11am to 8pm. Those affected are strongly encouraged to monitor their credit history and be on the lookout for incidents of fraud and identity theft.