The Houston, TX-based billing and collection company, Benefit Recovery Specialists, Inc., (BRSI) has announced it has discovered malware on its systems that may have allowed unauthorized individuals to view or obtain protected health information.
The personal and protected health information (PHI) on BRSI systems had been provided to the company in its capacity as a business associate and included the PHI of current and former members and patients of its health plan and healthcare provider customers.
The malware was discovered on April 30, 2020 and an internal investigation was immediately launched. Third-party computer forensics specialists were engaged to help investigate the breach and determine the extent and scope of the attack. The investigation revealed an unauthorized individual had gained access to BRSI systems using stolen employee credentials. Once a foothold had been established in the network, the attacker downloaded malware.
The forensic investigators concluded that the attacker first gained access to BRSI systems on April 20, 2020 and had access to the systems until April 30, 2020. During that time, PHI was accessible and may have been exfiltrated. The substitute breach notice on the BRSI website makes no mention of the type of malware involved.
The types of sensitive data on the compromised parts of its systems included names, dates of birth, dates of service, provider names, policy identification numbers, procedure codes, and/or diagnosis codes. The Social Security numbers of some individuals were also potentially compromised.
The investigation into the breach concluded on May 29, 2020 and patients started to be notified on June 2, 2020. No evidence of misuse of individuals’ PHI was identified, but affected individuals have been told to be alert to the risk of identity theft and fraud and have been advised to carefully monitor their account and explanation of benefits statements for signs of misuse of their information. Based on the substitute breach notice, it does not appear that credit monitoring services are being offered to breach victims.
The incident has been reported to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights. The breach summary indicates 274,837 individuals have been affected, making this one of the largest healthcare data breaches to be reported in 2020.
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