LifeBridge Data Breach Exposes Over 500,000 MD Patients

BALTIMORE, MD — Over 500,000 Marylanders who are patients of LifeBridge Health may have had their personal information exposed in a data breach, Attorney General Brian E. Frosh announced Tuesday.

LifeBridge Health and LifeBridge Potomac Professionals discovered the breach of a server that holds patient's registration, billing information, social security numbers and electronic health records.

The health system first discovered that malware infected the servers that hosts LifeBridge Potomac Professionals electronic medical record and LifeBridge Health’s patient registration and billing systems on March 18, 2018. Investigation determined an unauthorized person accessed the server through LifeBridge Potomac Professionals on September 27, 2016.

Information potentially exposed includes: patients’ names, addresses, dates of birth, diagnoses, medications, clinical and treatment information, insurance information, and in some instances, social security numbers, the health system said.

"At this time, we have no reason to believe that the information has been misused in any way," the company said in a statement. "We recommend patients review any billing statements or explanation of benefits statements for services. If you see services that you did not receive, contact the provider or insurer immediately. For those patients whose social security numbers were included, we are offering one year of free credit monitoring and identity protection services."

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The company sent letters to affected patients last week, and have established a dedicated call center to answer any questions patients may have.

If you believe you have been included and do not receive a letter by June 8, 2018, please call toll free 855-789-0909, Monday through Friday, between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. Eastern Time.

"We deeply regret any inconvenience or concern this incident may cause our patients. To help prevent something like this from happening in the future, we have enhanced the complexity of our password requirements and the security of our system," the company said.

LifeBridge offers services through:

• Sinai Hospital of Baltimore
• Northwest Hospital
• Carroll Hospital
• Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital

• Annapolis Regional Medical Center
• Bel Air Health Center
• CrossRoads Internal Medicine
• Frederick Regional Medical Center
• Laurel Medical Center
• Security Health Center
• Timonium Medical Center
• White Marsh Medical Center

How to Protect Yourself from Identity Theft

• Review your credit report from each of the three credit reporting agencies twice per year. You can stagger them so you are looking at a fresh report every two months. Under Maryland and federal law, you are entitled to two FREE credit reports from each of the Credit Reporting Agencies each year. Go to www.annualcreditreport.com or call 1-877-322-8228 to access your report through the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act. You must contact each of the three Credit Reporting Agencies individually to access your credit report under Maryland law: Equifax: 1-800-685-1111; Experian: 1-888-397-3742; TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289 .

Consumer Credit “Security Freezes”

A “security freeze” or “credit freeze” completely blocks the information on your credit report from would-be creditors. A credit freeze can help prevent identity theft. Most businesses will not open credit accounts without first checking a consumer's credit history. If your credit files are frozen, even someone who has your name and Social Security number might not be able to get credit in your name. Maryland law prohibits credit reporting agencies from charging more than $5 per credit freeze. Anyone who is a victim of identity theft will be able to freeze his or her credit reports for free.

For more information, check out the guide on freezing your credit report.

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