UW Medicine, Seattle, is notifying about 90,000 patients that a computer security breach in early October put their personal information at risk.
Malware in an e-mail attachment opened by a UW Medicine employee took control of a computer that contained Harborview Medical Center and University of Washington Medical Center patient data. That data may have included names, dates of birth, addresses, medical record numbers, dates of services, and Social Security and Medicare numbers.
The four-hospital system's staff discovered the incident the next day and reported it to the FBI, according to a statement posted to UW Medicine's website.
The system also took immediate steps to prevent additional malicious activity, though an internal investigation suggests that patient information was neither sought, nor targeted by the breach, according to the statement.
Even so, UW Medicine is notifying affected patients via direct mail and offering a call center staffed by identification experts to field questions. The FBI may also reach out to UW Medicine patients as part of the organization's investigation.
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