Healthcare data breach at Episource exposes 5 million patient records

Over the past decade, software companies have built solutions for almost all industries, including health care. A term that you could be familiar is the software as a service (SaaS), a model by which the software is accessible online via a subscription rather than installed on individual machines.

In health care, Saa providers are now a common part of the ecosystem. But, recently, many of them made the headlines for bad reasons.

Several data violations have been traced to the vulnerabilities of these third -party service providers. THE last incident comes from one of these companies, which has now confirmed that hackers have stolen health information of more than 5 million people in the United States during a cyber attack in January.

Register for my free cyberguy report
Get my best technological advice, my urgent safety alerts and my exclusive offers delivered directly in your reception box. In addition, you will get instant access to my survival guide at the ultimate – free scam when you register.

Healthcare Data Breach ascent exhibits 430,000 patient files

The SaaS company leads to a major health error

Episource, a big name in the health data analysis and coding services, has confirmed a major cybersecurity incident (via BIP computer). The violation involved sensitive health information belonging to more than 5 million people in the United States. The company first noticed a suspicious activity of the suspect system on February 6, 2025, but the real compromise began ten days earlier.

An internal survey revealed that the pirates had accessed and copied private data between January 27 and February 6. Society insists that not Financial information has been takenBut stolen files include names, contact details, social security numbers, Medicaid identifiers and complete medical history.

Episource claims that there is no evidence that the information has been poorly used, but because they have not yet seen the benefits do not mean that it does not happen. Once data like this have come out, it spreads quickly and the consequences do not wait for official confirmation.

More than 8 million patient files disclosed in the violation of health data

Why the SaaS of health is an increasing target

The health care industry has adopted cloud -based services to improve efficiency, change operations and reduce general costs. Companies like Episource allow health care payers to manage coding and risk adjustment on a much larger scale. But this change has also presented new risks. When third -party suppliers manage patient data, the safety of this data depends on their infrastructure.

Health care data is among the most precious types of personal information for pirates. Unlike the payment card data, which can be changed quickly, medical and identity files are long -term assets on the Dark web. These violations can cause insurance fraud, identity theft and even blackmail.

Episource is not the only one to face this type of attack. In recent years, several healthcare health care providers have faced violations, including Accellion and Blackbaud. These incidents affected millions of patients and led to collective appeals and a stricter examination of the government.

What is artificial intelligence (AI)?

5.5 million patients exposed by a violation of major health data

5 ways to protect yourself against violation of health care data

If your information was part of the violation of health care or something similar, it is worth taking some measures to protect you.

1. Consider protective flight protection services: Since the violation of health care data has exposed personal and financial information, it is crucial to remain proactive against identity theft. Identity flight protection services provide continuous monitoring of your credit reports, social security number and even Dark Web to detect if your information is poorly used.

These services send you real -time alerts on suspicious activities, such as new credit requests or attempts to open accounts on your behalf, helping you act quickly before serious damage occurs. Beyond surveillance, many identity theft protection companies provide dedicated recovery specialists who help you solve fraud problems, dispute of unauthorized charges and the restoration of your identity if it is compromised. See my advice and the best choices on how to protect yourself from identity theft.

2. Use personal data deletion services: The violation of health care data discloses a lot of information about you, and all of this could be in the public domain, which essentially gives anyone the opportunity to scam you.

A proactive step is to consider the personal data deletion services, which specialize in the monitoring and continuous deletion of your information from various databases and online websites. Although no service promises to delete all your Internet data, having a deletion service is excellent if you want to constantly monitor and automate the process of deleting your information from hundreds of continuous sites over a longer period of time. Consult my best choices for data deletion services here.

Get free scan To find out if your personal information is already on the web.

3. Have strong antivirus software: Pirates have e-mail addresses and comprehensive names of people, which allows them to easily send you a phishing link that installs malicious software and steals all your data. These messages are socially designed to catch them, and catching them is almost impossible if you are not careful. However, you are not without defenses.

The best way to protect yourself from malicious links is to have solid antivirus software installed on all your devices. This protection can also alert you to phishing emails and ransomware scams, protecting your personal information and digital assets. Get my choices for the best 2025 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.

4. Activate two factors authentication: Although passwords were not part of the data violation, you must always activate Two -factor authentication (2fa). It gives you an additional safety layer on all your important accounts, including emails, banks and social media. 2FA forces you to provide second information, such as a code sent to your phone, in addition to your password when connecting. The activation of 2FA can considerably reduce the risk of unauthorized access and protect your sensitive data.

5. Beware of mailbox communications: Bad actors can also try to scam you by post. The data leak gives them access to your address. They can pretend to be people or brands you know and use themes that require urgent attention, such as missed deliveries, account suspensions and security alerts.

Windows 10 safety defects leave millions of people vulnerable

Kurt’s main dishes

What makes this violation particularly alarming is that many affected patients may have never even heard of epource. As a business supplier to companies, Episource operates in the background, working with insurers and health care providers, not with patients directly. The people affected were customers of these companies, but it is their most sensitive data in danger due to a third party that they have never chosen or trusted. This type of indirect relationship spends waters with regard to responsibility and makes it even more difficult to require transparency or responsible holding.

Click here to obtain the Fox News app

Do you think health companies invest sufficiently in their cybersecurity infrastructure? Let us know by writing to Cyberguy.com/contact

For more of my technical advice and my security alerts, subscribe to my free Cyberguy Report newsletter by going to Cyberguy.com/newsletter

Ask Kurt or let us know what stories you would like us to cover

Follow Kurt on his social channels

Answers to the most posed Cyberguy questions:

Kurt new:

Copyright 2025 cyberguy.com. All rights reserved.