Poland hit by massive healthcare data breach affecting nearly 19 million

Polish authorities are investigating a major cyberattack on MyDr, a company providing software used to manage medical facilities and electronic medical records, after personal data belonging to nearly 19 million people was reportedly compromised.

Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said the stolen database contains more than 2 terabytes of information relating to people who use primary healthcare services, Caliber.Az reports per Polish media.

The compromised systems contain sensitive information including prescriptions, medical appointments, registered medicines and documents provided to doctors, Gawkowski said.

“We are dealing with a large volume of sensitive data concerning people using primary healthcare,” he said.

Despite the attack, medical facilities using MyDr’s systems continue to operate normally, according to the minister.

The breach was first reported on August 10. Poland’s Joint Cybersecurity Operations Centre met on August 12 to assess the incident and coordinate the response.

Gawkowski said he was in regular contact with Special Services Coordinator Tomasz Siemoniak, Health Minister Jolanta Sobierańska-Grenda and Mirosław Wróblewski, head of the Personal Data Protection Office.

The Central Bureau for Combating Cybercrime is also involved in the investigation as authorities work to determine the scope of the breach and the circumstances surrounding the theft of the data.

By Aghakazim Guliyev