A recent data breach at WellTok, Inc., a data management company, has potentially exposed the personal information of patients at the Guthrie Clinic.
The breach, which occurred on May 30, 2023, involved unauthorized access to WellTok’s server, leading to the transfer of patient data by an unknown party. WellTok, which provides communication services to various healthcare systems including Guthrie Clinic, stated that the compromised data includes patient names, birth dates, addresses, email addresses, medical provider information, medical record numbers, and health insurance details.
Guthrie Clinic has assured that no social security numbers, financial, or credit card information were shared with WellTok, thus were not affected by this breach. In response to the incident, Guthrie has halted all data-sharing activities with WellTok. The clinic is actively conducting its own investigation to understand the full extent of the breach and the specific data involved. Meanwhile, WellTok has commenced mailing notification letters to approximately 144,000 individuals whose data was stored on the compromised server.
As a precaution, WellTok is offering affected patients 12 months of complimentary access to fraud and identity theft monitoring services through Experian. Guthrie Clinic emphasizes the seriousness of this incident and the importance of securing patient information. While there have been no ransom demands or public release of the data so far, Guthrie is reviewing its vendor relationship with WellTok and considering alternative service providers to prevent such incidents in the future.
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