If your health data hasn’t been broken in 2024, then you don’t know it yet or you should consider yourself very lucky.
That’s because the year 2024 was a nightmare for healthcare facilities and patients in the U.S. Overall 184,111,469 records were hurt. That’s 53% of the United States population in 2024.
This staggering number represents a significant increase over previous years, setting a new and alarming record for health data breaches.
The healthcare sector has faced unprecedented cybersecurity challenges, and attacks have become more frequent, sophisticated and damaging than ever before.
I’M GIVING AWAY THE LATEST AND BEST AIRPODS PRO 2
Illustration of a hacker at work stealing health information (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Health check or data leak?
Being admitted to the hospital is stressful enough. This caused additional stress for 100 million Change Healthcare customerswhose data was exposed after the break-in organized by the BlackCat ransomware group. Not only did the breach expose sensitive health data, but it also caused widespread disruptions in claims processing. Patients and providers across the country faced chaos as the breach affected their ability to access and pay for healthcare services.
Another significant breach occurred at the Kaiser Foundation health plan, where personal information from 13.4 million individuals are at risk. This breach involved unauthorized access and the use of tracking technologies that transmitted user interactions to third parties.
Illustration of health data that needs to be locked (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
HACKERS CLAIM MASSIVE BREACH OF COMPANY THAT TRACKS AND SELLS LOCATION DATA OF AMERICANS
Your health data was breached, so what?
You will receive a notification letter, but please note that it may take months before it reaches you (as was the case with the victims Ascension Health Data Breach). The consequences are real and can be very painful. Medical identity theft directly affects the health and safety of patients. This occurs when criminals use stolen personal health information to obtain medical services or medications under another person’s name. This can result in the creation of inaccurate medical records that may include incorrect diagnoses, allergies or treatments.
And as you might imagine, this can also result in financial consequences, such as patients receiving fraudulent claims and bills for services they did not receive. Addressing these issues with insurers and healthcare providers takes time and mental strength. And you’re probably no longer in a rush to see your hacked health care provider. That’s normal. The study showed that up to 54% of patients are considering switching providers after a data breach.
WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)?
A doctor looking at health information on a screen (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
DO DATA INTERMEDIARIES THREATEN YOUR PENSION SECURITY?
When health data gets into the hands of a data broker
Sensitive health information can easily be combined with personal identifiers of data brokers, creating comprehensive profiles that criminals can take advantage. As a reminder, data brokers are companies that specialize in collecting, processing and selling personal data from various sources, including public records, online activities and social media.
They collect this data to create detailed consumer profiles that can be sold to retailers, insurance companies and other entities for various purposes. The more detailed the profile, the greater the chance for identity theft and possible discrimination in employment and insurance. Employers could make hiring decisions based on perceived health risks, while insurers could deny coverage or raise premiums.
CLICK HERE TO SET FOX BUSINESS IN CRETE
Doctor and patient in a health facility (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
THE HIDDEN COST OF FREE APPS: YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
Wash your hands, remove your data
You can’t prevent a data breach, but you can minimize its consequences by reducing your overall digital footprint.
1. Set your social networks to private: Restrict access to your personal information and limit what strangers can see about your life and potentially your health. Ensure your privacy settings are robust and regularly updated to prevent unauthorized data collection.
2. Remove your personal information from the broker’s databases: By searching for your name on people search sites and asking for removal, one by one, or using a data removal service. Data removal services automate data removal for you and allow you to track exactly where your data was found and whether it was removed, not only on people search sites, which are public data brokers, but also on hidden, private databases where you can’t look (and these are the worst).
After your data is removed, data removal services monitor the data brokers for your data and remove them again if necessary (as they tend to get listed again after a while). That way, you prevent data broker companies from compiling a full profile of you and selling it to the first bidder, whether it’s a hacker, a marketing agency, or an insurance company. Check out my top picks for data removal services here.
3. Delete all unused applications on the phone: Unused apps can be hidden gateways to data leaks and potential security vulnerabilities. Check regularly and remove apps which you no longer use and do not need.
4. Check the permissions of those you want to keep: Review each application access to your personal information, location and device features to make sure you don’t inadvertently share more information than necessary. Be especially careful with health and fitness tracking apps.
5. Use a VPN (virtual private network) when browsing: Encrypt your online activities and mask your digital location to add an extra layer of anonymity and protection. Reliable VPN can help protect your personal information from potential interceptors and data miners. For the best VPN software, check out my expert review of the best VPNs for private web browsing on your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.
Kurt’s outdoor essentials
The reality of a health data breach is terrifying, but it’s not completely out of your control. While you can’t prevent breaches, you can take steps to reduce the risks and protect your personal information. Think of it like adding locks to your digital door: set your social media to private, use a VPN, and clean up unused apps. Remember, the less information you leave out there, the harder it is for bad actors to exploit it. Stay alert and don’t let your information become someone’s advantage.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
What do you think about the increasing risks to your personal data and what steps have you taken to protect your data? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.
For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report newsletter by going to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.
Ask Kurt a question or tell us what stories you want us to cover.
Follow Kurt on his social channels:
Answers to the most frequently asked CyberGuy questions:
New from Kurt:
Copyright 2025 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
