Quest Diagnostics confirms data breach following cyberattack on its lab system

Medical lab testing giant Quest Diagnostics confirmed a cyberattack and data breach affecting sensitive patient information stored in its systems. Quest stated in an 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it learned of the cyberattack on Wednesday, targeting its Quanum lab testing platform.

The Incident

The Quanum platform allows doctors, hospitals, and healthcare practices to request lab tests and handle billing, storing large amounts of patient health records and medical data. Quest reported that unauthorized access included certain patient records, and the company has notified law enforcement while investigating the breach. The company has not yet said how many patients had information stolen, and a spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.

Industry Impact

This incident is the latest major cyberattack to affect the healthcare industry, following recent hacks at companies like Stryker, Boston Scientific, CareCloud, Craneware, and McKesson. Quest previously suffered a major data breach in 2019 that exposed 11.9 million patient records through a third-party billing company.

Context

Quanum is used by about half a million clinicians in thousands of locations across North America, holding vast amounts of sensitive medical documents. Healthcare organizations have increasingly become targets for financially motivated cybercriminals seeking to steal valuable patient data and demand ransoms.