NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Yale-New Haven Hospital announced on Friday, it was impacted by the large Blackbaud data breach.
A spokesperson for the hospital explains YNHH has long used Blackbaud for donor communications and engagement. This hack was part of a larger global one that affected Blackbaud's 35,000 clients worldwide.
Blackbaud told the hospital of the security breach on September 1.
"An unauthorized party had removed non-financial information as part of a ransomware attack on Blackbaud systems at some point between February 7 and May 20, 2020. Yale-New Haven Health System (YNHHS) immediately undertook an extensive internal investigation to determine what information was potentially exposed and which people were affected," said the spokesperson in a written statement.
Blackbaud paid a demand from the outside party and was assured all the data that was taken was destroyed. They said they do not believe the info has been shared. YNHH says they have not been able to independently validate the assurance.
Names, Addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and philanthropic history was taken as part of the hack. A very small group of those impacted may have had financial information exposed. Those impacted are being told directly and being offered a complimentary credit monitoring service.
YNHH said as of the time of this writing, the attackers did not get access to the hospital's electronic medical record system. The hospital added it will review its relationship with the software company.
"Yale-New Haven Hospital truly regrets any inconvenience this has caused. As a premier healthcare provider, we strive to demonstrate respect for patients and our community and to always safeguard that information. Letters have been mailed to all those whose information was involved in this incident and if anyone has any concern, they can call 888-479-3575," said a spokesperson in a written statement.
More information on the security incident can be found here.
YNHH said it is continuing to investigate if any other hospitals in its health system were impacted and will share that information as soon as it is available.
