Although it is required to have patients’ information encrypted for security and privacy protections, the information on the flash drive was not encrypted, and it is still unclear how exactly the device was lost, according to the report.
The information contained on the flash drive affected patients that were tested for urinary tract infections from July 2010-Oct. 2010. Information included names, medical record numbers, test information and results, according to the report.
In a statement, Henry Ford’s Chief Privacy Officer Meredith Philips said there is no reason to believe the data contained on the flash drive was misused. This is the second instance of a data breach occurring within the hospital.
Read the news report about the Henry Ford Health System data breach.
Read other coverage about data breaches:
– Study Finds 5M Individuals’ Information Lost, Stolen During First Year of HITECH
– Personal Medical Records of 1.7M New York Individuals Stolen
– 61% of Data Breaches a Result of Malicious Intent
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