ROCKY HILL — A healthcare group is notifying its patients after they said there was a data breached in an incident earlier this year.
Starling Physicians P.C., a Connecticut based multispecialty healthcare group, said they are notifying some of their patients who were potentially impacted by a data security incident. The company has 35 locations throughout central Connecticut and Western Massachusetts.
Starling said they were targeted by a cyber-phishing attack on February 8, 2019. “Upon learning of the incident, we promptly secured the email accounts to prevent further access. We also retained a leading forensic security firm to investigate and conduct a comprehensive search for any personal information in the impacted accounts, and to confirm the security of our email and computer systems,” they said in an email.
The company was told on September 12, 2019, that the breach affected email accounts which contained certain patients’ names, addresses, dates of birth, passport numbers, Social Security numbers, medical information and health insurance or billing information.
On Tuesday, the company said they mailed notification letters to impacted patients for whom it had a valid mailing address. “The notification letters provide information on steps individuals can take to protect themselves against potential fraud or identity theft. Individuals whose Social Security number was impacted also received an offer of complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.”
Starling said that patients should remain vigilant to the possibility of fraud and identity theft by reviewing credit card, bank, and other financial statements, as well as claims made using their insurance for any unauthorized activity. If individuals detect any suspicious activity, they should notify the entity with which the account is maintained, and promptly report the suspicious activity to appropriate law enforcement authorities, including the police and their state attorney general. In addition, anyone looking for information on fraud prevention can review tips provided by the FTC at www.ftc.gov/idtheft.
People with any questions or concerns about this incident, please contact 1-888-800-3306, Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm.
