Bone & Joint Reports Recent “System Outage” Resulted in Data Breach Affecting Patients and Employees

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On March 7, 2023, Bone & Joint began notifying current and former patients and employees of a data breach after experiencing a reported “network outage,” resulting in sensitive information in the company’s possession being compromised. Based on the company’s official filing, the incident resulted in an unauthorized party gaining access to consumers’ names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, home addresses, phone numbers, health insurance information, and diagnosis and treatment information. As of March 13, 2023, Bone & Joint has yet to file a notice of the breach with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. However, on March 10, 2023, the company issued a press release describing the incident in further detail.

If you are a current or former patient of Bone & Joint, or you have ever worked for the company, your sensitive personal information may now be in the hands of hackers. How hackers will use your information remains unknown; however, as we’ve discussed in prior posts, cyber criminals will often sell stolen information to identity thieves on the Dark Web. As a result, receiving word of a data breach affecting your information should raise a red flag, prompting you to take all possible steps to reduce the risk of fraud. Additionally, data breach victims whose information was leaked as a result of a company’s negligence may be able to obtain financial compensation through a data breach lawsuit.

What We Know So Far About the Bone & Joint Breach

The available information regarding the Bone & Joint breach comes from various news sources, some of which reviewed the data breach letter sent to victims of the breach. According to these sources, on January 16, 2023, Bone & Joint learned that the company’s computer systems were down as a result of a “network outage.” While Bone & Joint has not yet elaborated on what was meant by the term network outage, the company explained that the personal and protected health information of past and current employees and patients may have been acquired without authorization.

On January 27, 2023, Bone & Joint completed its review of the affected files to determine which patients’ and employees’ information was affected. While the breached information varies depending on the individual, it may include your name, date of birth, Social Security number, home address, phone number, health insurance information, and diagnosis and treatment information.

On March 7, 2023, Bone & Joint sent out data breach letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident.

More Information About Bone & Joint

Founded in 1969, Bone & Joint is a multispecialty orthopedic care provider based in Wausau, Wisconsin. Bone & Joint provides various surgical and non-surgical treatment options for those experiencing orthopedic issues involving the feet, knees, back, neck, hips, wrists and shoulders. The company operates locations in Medford, Merrill, Mosinee, Plover, Rib Mountain, Wausau, and Weston. Bone & Joint employs more than 270 people and generates approximately $39 million in annual revenue.

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.

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