TEXAS COMPUTERS STOLEN http://healthitsecurity.com/2014/03/03/patient-information-breached-after-office-computer-theft/

Patient information breached after office computer theft

Author Name Nicole Freeman   |   Date March 3, 2014   |   Tagged Administrative Safeguards,Health Data Breach, Health Data Encryption, Health Data Security, HIPAA, PHI, Physical Safeguards,Technical Safeguards

An office break-in may have comprised theprotected health information (PHI) of patients at Dr. J.M. Benson’s Sherman, Texas practice, according to a report from the Herald Democrat. The incident was reported on January 5, 2014.

During the theft, computers and at least one hard drive were stolen from the office. The devices contained patient information including names, addresses, phone numbers, health insurance provider numbers, and Social Security numbers. It is not clear as to whether or not the information was encrypted.

In a written statement, the office advised patients to check their health reports for fraudulent service charges, as well as credit reports. “We suspect that it might be possible for the persons who stole the equipment to attempt to use the information contained therein for the purposes of committing health insurance fraud,” the statement said.

Since the incident, the office has begun updating its security system. The police investigation is ongoing.

NEW ZEALAND COMPUTER HARD DRIVE STOLEN http://www.odt.co.nz/regions/southland/271150/schoolgirls-details-stolen-burglary-pho

Schoolgirls' details stolen in burglary of PHO

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By Allison Rudd on Sat, 31 Aug 2013

The Regions: Southland

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The personal details of hundreds of Southland schoolgirls have been stolen in a burglary.

The information was on a back-up computer hard-drive stolen from the Invercargill offices of the Southern Primary Health Organisation (PHO) on August 16.

It included names and addresses and the vaccination dates of girls from 34 schools participating in the human papillomavirus (HPV) immunisation programme during 2011 and last year, Southern PHO chief executive Ian Macara said yesterday.

Mr Macara, who is based in Dunedin, would not say exactly how many names were on the hard drive but said ''it didn't take a genius to work out it was hundreds''.

The thieves had broken through two locked doors and a locked cabinet to steal computers and electronic gear, he said.

''In some ways, we're the victims. Our staff feel very, very violated. But we didn't have the information encrypted, so there are no excuses, and we apologise.''

Letters had been sent to the parents or guardians of all the girls and a dedicated helpline has been set up.

Staff member Kaylene Holland, who is handling hotline inquiries, said yesterday she had fielded several calls, mainly from parents or guardians wanting to know exactly what information had been on the hard drive.

Mr Macara said schools and GPs were also being notified and his staff had spoken to the office of the privacy commissioner.

An alarm system had been installed in the PHO building since the break-in, he said. PHO staff were conducting an internal audit of data protection methods and were working with the police.

''We regret this unfortunate incident and are doing everything we can to assist the police investigation, which we hope will result in the safe return of the information ... and these people being caught.''

The PHO hotline number is 0800 477-117.

- allison.rudd@alliedpress.co.nz

INDIA COMPUTER HARD DRIVES STOLEN http://www.dnaindia.com/india/1874815/report-computer-thieves-target-babus-abode

Computer thieves target babus' abode

Thursday, Aug 15, 2013, 12:03 IST | Place: Delhi | Agency: DNA

Shashi Bhushan  

Even babus are not immune to theft. Crucial records belonging to the education department of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) went missing after hard disks, processors and RAMs from at least eleven computers were stolen from inside the Civic Centre.

High ranking officials such as the assistant director (education), as well as deputy education officers and lower divisional clerks were hit by the daring heist.

The civic body has registered a case of theft against unknown persons at Kamla Market police station.

According to sources, the theft, which occurred on the 23rd floor office of the department, may have been carried out by insiders. They reason that since the theft happened on a Saturday, when the entire establishment was closed, people working in the centre may have been involved.

“The education department employees worked on these computers on July 13 (Saturday) through the day till 6.45pm. The incident of theft came to light on July 15. Important department data was stored in these computers,” the complaint said.

“The hard disk and other components of several computers belonging to people holding key post have been targeted; it is obvious that important data has been stolen. These computers had data on midday meals, tender documents, and purchase of school uniforms, desks and books,” said an official on condition of anonymity.

Sources added that the theft could be part of a larger conspiracy, and there could be some ‘ulterior motives’ behind the incident.

This is not the first time security at the Civic Centre has been compromised.

Following several incidents of theft, officials had issue an order in June to restrict the entry of people into the building, especially on weekends and holidays.

UK COMPUTERS STOLEN http://www.thejournal.co.uk/news/north-east-news/artist-appeals-return-computer-hard-5271075

Sunderland artist appeals for return of stolen photos

24 Jul 2013 08:30

An artist has made an appeal for the return of irreplaceable family photos on computer hard drives stolen from her Sunderland home

An artist has been left devastated after burglars stole computers containing months of work and precious family photos from her home.

The crooks ransacked the house Gill Rogers shares with her partner while they were away, stealing thousands of pounds worth of goods, including cameras, computers, jewellery and personal documents. They loaded the haul into the couple’s own suitcases and then used their Citroen Saxo as a getaway vehicle.

And while the missing items will cost thousands of pounds to replace, it is the loss of four computers hard drives that have caused Gill the most devastation.

The 54-year-old, who is artist in residence at Gateshead Council, had months of work and planning stored on them, along with irreplaceable family photos including snaps of Gill’s late father, and pictures taken of her son when he was a child.

She said: “They took all our computers and all their back-ups. All my work was on there and all my photographs. Those are things you can’t replace.”

The house on The Oaks West, in Sunderland, was targeted between 2am and 11.45am on Saturday, June 29.

When Gill and her partner Lisa Rake, 45, returned, they found the thieves had smashed their way in through a back door, before packing the couple’s suitcases with their belongings, and loading them into their car.

“When we came back it was a mess,” said Gill. “They had just emptied all our suitcases and filled them with all our stuff and gone off with it in out car.”

And while Gill is counting the cost of her material loss, she is also coming to terms with the missing memories, as the four computer hard drives stored the only copies of her photographs.

“We had a back-up system on our computers so we thought they were safe, but that has gone too,” she said.

“Really we just want the hard drives back. We can buy more stuff, but those pictures are irreplaceable.

“It’s a very unpleasant feeling to know that someone has been through all your stuff and we feel very vulnerable.”

Gill is now offering a £200 reward for the return of her hard-drives.

She is also keen to get an antique perfume bottle, which is now used as a pendant, back and will consider a reward for its return.

PC Mick Murphy of Northumbria Police, who is investigating the break-in, said: “Inquiries into this high-value burglary are ongoing and we are trying to locate the stolen property. Anyone who has been offered any the items for sale or who knows of there whereabouts is asked to contact us with any information.

“The family has offered a reward for the return of the hard drives in particular as they have sentimental items on them, including photographs, which are irreplaceable.”

If you have any information, call Northumbria Police on 101.

MASSACHUSETTS COMPUTER HARD DRIVE STOLEN http://reading.patch.com/articles/hard-drive-stolen-from-library-computer

The following is an excerpt from the Reading Police Department log from Friday through Monday. The information is open to the public.

Friday, May 24

• At 8:38 a.m., a caller reported a car accident on Charles Street. No injuries were reported.
• At 11:03 a.m., a caller reported a car accident on Lowell Street. No injuries were reported.
• At 12:59 p.m., an employee from the libraryreported that a hard drive was stolen from one of the computers.
• At 1:34 p.m., a caller reported a car accident on Walkers Brook Drive. No injuries were reported.

UK COMPUTERS STOLEN http://www.wishawpress.co.uk/wishaw-news/local-wishaw-news/wishaw-news/2012/10/10/nhs-lanarkshire-computers-and-files-reported-as-missing-76495-31997878/

NHS Lanarkshire computers and files reported as missing

Oct 10 2012 by Euan McLelland, Wishaw Press

Six computers and a hard-drive have gone missing from NHS Lanarkshire buildings since 2008.

Specialist equipment, a variety of potentially deadly drugs and a cabinet containing school health records are some of the other more concerning items to have been either stolen or lost at the health board’s hospitals and medical centres.

In the list of missings items are four benches, a CCTV monitor, wheelchairs, nine sections of metal fencing, the end plate of a trampoline and contact lenses were also noted as AWOL.

More than £6700 cash was also misplaced or stolen, along with a number of purses, wallets and bank cards.

NHS Lanarkshire have said that patient confidentially would not have been compromised by the potential theft of the six computers and laptops reported missing during the three years.

In replying to our Freedom of Information request, the health board said: “NHS Lanarkshire undertook an exercise to encrypt all laptops and can confirm that the missing laptops were fully encrypted. For all desktop computers, which are not encrypted, an exercise has been completed to remove all information from hard drives and store this on central servers. In addition, the IT systems do not allow users to store anything to the computer’s hard drive.

“This provides added security to NHS Lanarkshire in that should any computers be lost or stolen there will be no information held on the hard drive.”

Medical equipment reported as missing during the three-year period included a fibre-optic layngoscope, an auriscope, a syringe driver, a sphygmomanometer-stethescope, a telemetry unit and a number of hearing aids.

NHS Lanarkshire said: “We have robust procedures in place governing the loss of any date or equipment lost or stolen.

“All incidents must be reported so that a full investigation can take place.”

KANSAS COMPUTERS STOLEN http://www.saljournal.com/news/story/computer-10-9-12

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Two more burglaries at Salina businesses involve computer equipment

10/10/2012
By ERIN MATHEWS Salina Journal 

The motive for a string of Salina burglaries in which computer hard drives have been stolen is a head scratcher, a police department spokesman said.

"When you go to the trouble of pulling the cover off a computer and removing the hard drive, you are targeting that for a specific reason," said Lt. Scott Siemsen of the Salina Police Department. "So, is it the information on that hard drive, or are you using it for something else on down the road?"

Siemsen said the thieves appear to be targeting computer hard drives, possibly for private information stored on the computers. He said many of the hard drives taken were from computer systems that were protected by passwords or had other safeguards in place to secure information.

The department has not seen any instances of identity theft or other crimes believed to be related to the hard drive thefts, he said.

Late Sunday or early Monday, two more businesses were hit in break-ins police believe to be related to six previous burglaries at five other businesses, Siemsen said.

In many of the burglaries, the thief or thieves have disassembled computer towers and removed just the hard drives or memory cards. The businesses that have been targeted include insurance offices, an accounting office, a used-book store, a tire dealership and a beauty and spa business.

The most recent burglaries occurred at an American Family Insurance office, 440 S. Ohio, and Heartland Adjustment, 801 E. Prescott.

At American Family, a back window was forced open between 6 p.m. Sunday and 7:35 a.m. Monday, Siemsen said. 

Taken were a main computer server tower, a laptop computer with docking station, a white gold American Family Insurance commemorative ring, a pair of Oakley sunglasses and cash, Siemsen said. Total loss and damage was estimated at $6,720.

At Heartland Adjustment, an insurance adjusting business, a back door was forced open between 6:30 p.m. Sunday and 7:50 a.m. Monday, Siemsen said. Taken were a computer hard drive, a Hewlett Packard computer tower, a Seagate external drive and four digital cameras. Loss and damage was estimated at $2,730.

The investigation is ongoing, and police ask that anyone with information about any of the crimes call Crimestoppers at 825-TIPS, text SATIPS to CRIMES (274637), or visit pd.salina.org and follow the Crimestoppers link to submit a Web tip. 

Tipsters may receive a cash reward of as much as $1,000 and are not required to give their names.

Look into security

Siemsen said police recommend business owners evaluate security and look at ways to improve lighting. He recommended camera and alarm systems. A dark image of two men involved in a break-in at Accounts Receivable Services on Sept. 6 was captured on video and can be viewed at salina.com.

He also suggested making sure computer systems are protected with a password and have other protections to prevent information theft, as well as keeping a listing of serial numbers of the computers owned by a business in a secure location.

Previous burglaries police believe to be related occurred at Glam on the Go, 745 E. Prescott, on Sept. 5; ARS, 806 E. Crawford, and All-State Insurance, 804 E. Crawford, on Sept. 6; Cross Midwest Tire, 684 S. Broadway, on Sept. 20; and The Book Nook, 147 S. Fourth, on Sept. 23 and Oct. 3.

Siemsen said police have checked with other police departments in the region and have found no similar cases.

"We've done checking, and nobody seems to have anything similar to a rash of these type of burglaries," he said.

KANSAS COMPUTER HARD DRIVES STOLEN http://www.ksallink.com/?cmd=displaystory&story_id=23755&format=html

Hard Drive Stolen

Jeff Garretson - Mon 11:27 AM 09/24/2012

Another hard drive is stolen from a Salina business.

Police say sometime between Saturday at 5pm and 8:30am Sunday morning, someone forced open a back door at a warehouse to gain entry into the adjoining business which is the Book Nook, 147 S. 4th and removed a hard drive from a computer.

Thirty dollars cash was also taken.

Total loss and damage is listed at $580.

Police are now investigating three separate burglaries this month where hard drives have been removed from their computer tower.

Three hard drives were taken from ARS Accounting Services, 804 E. Crawford, while two hard drives were removed from Cross-Midwest Tire, 684 S. Broadway.

SINGAPORE COMPUTER HARD DRIVES STOLEN http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1223059/1/.html

Man nabbed for theft of computer hard disks at NTU Posted: 30 August 2012 2051 hrs     Photos 1 of 1 Through the assistance of the Malaysian police, 61 hard disks were eventually recovered and seized from a second-hand goods dealer in Johor Bahru, Malaysia.       inShare 2   SINGAPORE: Police have arrested a 21-year-old Malaysian man believed to be involved in a spate of cases involving theft of computer hard disks at the Nanyang Technological University. In August 2012, police received two reports that a total of 83 computer hard disks worth about S$10,000 had been stolen from two of the university's computer laboratories. Officers from the Jurong Police Division managed to establish the identity of the male suspect and subsequently arrested him. Through the assistance of the Malaysian police, 61 hard disks were eventually recovered and seized from a second-hand goods dealer in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. The suspect will be charged in Court on Friday for theft. If convicted, he could be jailed up to seven years and fined. - CNA/cc