Johns Hopkins hit with class action lawsuit connected to data breach
BALTIMORE -- A class action lawsuit has been filed against Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Health system in the wake of a data breach that impacted patients, students, and employees.
The lawsuit, filed by a patient named Pamela Hunter, alleges that Hopkins "failed to properly secure and safeguard" patients' personal and medical information.
Johns Hopkins sent a letter out in June, alerting those who may have been impacted. Hopkins said the cybersecurity attack happened on May 31 and was connected to the MOVEit software attack that impacted other large organizations around the world.
WJZ received this statement Friday from Johns Hopkins: "Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Health System learned that our systems were among those affected by a broad-based cybersecurity attack that targeted a widely used software platform for transferring data files, called MOVEit. This attack has impacted many large organizations and industries around the world. At Johns Hopkins, we took immediate steps to secure our systems and are working closely with cybersecurity experts and law enforcement.
The privacy and security of Johns Hopkins community members and our patients is our highest priority, and we are actively in the process of communicating with impacted individuals. We also are making available resources and tools to protect against possible identity theft or fraud, and we encourage members of our community to visit our websites for more information."
In the wake of the attack, Hopkins posted this message saying it is investigating and urging people to take steps to protect their information.
Cybersecurity expert and professor at the University of Maryland Global Campus, Jesse Varsalone, says attacks like this are common.
"Hopkins really works hard to secure their systems this is not negligence this is something that could happen to any company," he said.
Some people are worried that the hackers will be able to sell their data, which would make them vulnerable to fraud, but Varsalone says there is more at stake.
Johns Hopkins University has "a far greater concern because they're doing ground-breaking research," he said.
