Benefis Hospitals

The covered entity (CE), Benefis Hospitals, reported that multiple employees were victims of an email phishing attack that compromised the protected health information (PHI) of 81,043 individuals. The PHI involved included names, dates of birth, addresses, diagnoses, passport numbers, health insurance information, drivers’ license numbers, Social Security numbers, and clinical information. The CE notified HHS, affected individuals, the media, and provided substitute notice. In response to the breach, the CE retrained employees on the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules and implemented additional technical safeguards. OCR provided technical assistance to the CE regarding the HIPAA Rules.