The Hillsborough County Consumer Protection Agency is advising residents to be extra vigilant with their medical information.
Cyber attacks have been occurring for years, but attacks targeting health care information are expected to rise due to the value of medical information becoming 10 times more than credit card information on the black market, according to a release.
Cyber criminals reportedly receive $20 for health insurance information, compared to $1 or $2 for credit card numbers. Some experts have said the value of someone’s medical identity can even be as high as 50 times that of a person’s financial identity because it doesn’t perish like a credit card number that can be cancelled.
Security loopholes at hospitals, health care providers and pharmaceutical companies have made it much easier than in the past for these attackers to be successful, especially when the attackers are improving their methods, officials said. Some criminals use the information to impersonate patients with diseases in order to obtain prescriptions for controlled substances, in addition to financial fraud.
Victims often are unaware for months or years that their information has been compromised. Attackers will attempt to use someone’s identity for medical care or services, and the damage can generate changes to health records that can be difficult to correct.
The World Privacy Forum offers these preventive steps:
- Closely monitor any “explanation of benefits” sent by a public or private health insurer. Be on the lookout for service charges, office visits, or medical equipment not received or purchased.
- Each year, request a listing of benefits paid from health insurers. Watch for changes to billing addresses and phone numbers.
- Request copies of current medical files from each health care provider. Consider making the request each time there is a doctor visit.
- Correct erroneous and false information in a file.
- If someone is a victim of medical identity theft, file a police report. It may be needed for health care providers and insurance companies.
- Keep an eye on credit reports. Remove bad records from a credit file by filing a police report and sending it to the collection agency.
For more information, call (813) 903-3430, or visit WorldPrivacyForum.org.
