PracticeMax provides Notice of Data Incident

Phoenix, Arizona, February 18, 2022: PracticeMax is notifying individuals of a data incident.  To date, we have no evidence of actual or attempted misuse of information as a result of this incident. This notice provides details about the incident, PracticeMax's response, and resources available to help protect information.

Who is PracticeMax?  PracticeMax is a business management and information technology solutions company.  It provides services including billing, consulting, registration, and other solutions to companies across the United States, including hospitals, insurance companies, employers, and physician offices. 

What Happened?  On May 1, 2021, PracticeMax became aware of technical issues relating to systems in the PracticeMax network.  It promptly commenced an investigation and identified ransomware on certain systems.  It disconnected its systems and partnered with subject matter specialists to assist with the investigation and to confirm the security of its network. PracticeMax began restoring the network and business operations, and it implemented additional security policies and controls. It also communicated the incident to its customers. 

The investigation determined the PracticeMax network was subject to unauthorized access beginning on April 17, 2021 until May 5, 2021 and during that time one server was accessed and certain files may have been removed.  The investigation also identified unauthorized access to a limited number of company email accounts. PracticeMax reviewed the server and email accounts for sensitive information and determined that some personal information may have been accessed by an unauthorized individual as a result of this incident.  Additionally, some of the data stored in the network was encrypted as a result of the ransomware.

What Information Was Involved?  In general, PracticeMax collects demographic and health information, including but not limited to name, address, Social Security number, date of birth, treatment and/or diagnosis information, health insurance information and, in some cases, and financial information for individuals associated with its customers.  The review of the involved server and email accounts determined that these types of information may have been present in the involved systems at the time of the incident in addition to patient account number, employer and employee identification number, passport number, driver's license/state identification number, prescription information, and in very limited circumstances provider or employee username and password or PIN.  The information involved varied by individual.

What is PracticeMax Doing?  PracticeMax is committed to safeguarding information in its care and has strict security measures in place to protect information in its care.  Upon learning of this incident, it moved quickly to investigate and respond and to confirm the security of its systems.  PracticeMax notified the FBI, the media, its customers, and relevant state and federal regulators.  While the investigation was ongoing, PracticeMax also began notifying potentially impacted individuals. As part of its ongoing commitment to the privacy of information in its care, PracticeMax also reviewed its existing policies and procedures and implemented additional safeguards to further its already stringent security policies and procedures and to secure the information in its systems.

What You Can Do.  PracticeMax does not have any evidence of misuse of personal information at this time.  However, in general PracticeMax encourages individuals to remain vigilant by reviewing documents for suspicious activity, including health insurance statements, explanation of benefits forms, account statements and credit reports and to report unfamiliar activity to relevant entities immediately. Individuals may also consider the resource information below.

For More Information. Individuals with questions may contact PracticeMax's dedicated call center at 1-855-568-2073 (toll free), Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Additional information may also be found at https://www.practicemax.com/notice-of-data-incident/.

Monitor Accounts: Under U.S. law, a consumer is entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.  To order your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call, toll-free, 1-877-322-8228.  You may also directly contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below to request a free copy of your credit report.

Consumers have the right to place an initial or extended "fraud alert" on a credit file at no cost.  An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer's credit file.  Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer's credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer's identity before extending new credit.  If you are a victim of identity theft, you are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years.  Should you wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any one of the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below.

As an alternative to a fraud alert, consumers have the right to place a "credit freeze" on a credit report, which will prohibit a credit bureau from releasing information in the credit report without the consumer's express authorization.  The credit freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent.  However, you should be aware that using a credit freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in your credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit.  Pursuant to federal law, you cannot be charged to place or lift a credit freeze on your credit report.  To request a security freeze, you will need to provide the following information:

Should you wish to place a credit freeze, please contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below:

Additional Information: As a general practice, PracticeMax encourages individuals to frequently reset online account passwords, to use complex password combinations, and to not share passwords or use identical passwords for multiple online accounts. You may further educate yourself regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, credit freezes, and the steps you can take to protect your personal information by contacting the consumer reporting bureaus, the Federal Trade Commission, or your state Attorney General.  The Federal Trade Commission may be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580; www.identitytheft.gov; 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); and TTY: 1-866-653-4261.  The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them.  You can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above.  You have the right to file a police report if you ever experience identity theft or fraud.  Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, you will likely need to provide some proof that you have been a victim.  Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and your state Attorney General.  This notice has not been delayed by law enforcement.

For District of Columbia residents, the District of Columbia Attorney General may be contacted at: 441 4th St. NW #1100 Washington, D.C. 20001; 202-727-3400; and oag@dc.gov.

For Maryland residents, the Maryland Attorney General may be contacted at: 200 St. Paul Place, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202; 1-410-528-8662 or 1-888-743-0023; and www.oag.state.md.us. PracticeMax is located at 1440 East Missouri Avenue, Suite C-200, Phoenix, AZ 85014.

For New Mexico residents, you have rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, such as the right to be told if information in your credit file has been used against you, the right to know what is in your credit file, the right to ask for your credit score, and the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information.  Further, pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the consumer reporting bureaus must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information; consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information; access to your file is limited; you must give your consent for credit reports to be provided to employers; you may limit "prescreened" offers of credit and insurance you get based on information in your credit report; and you may seek damages from violator.  You may have additional rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act not summarized here.  Identity theft victims and active-duty military personnel have specific additional rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act.  We encourage you to review your rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act by visiting www.consumerfinance.gov/f/201504_cfpb_summary_your-rights-under-fcra.pdf, or by writing Consumer Response Center, Room 130-A, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580.

For New York residents, the New York Attorney General may be contacted at: Office of the Attorney General, The Capitol, Albany, NY 12224-0341; 1-800-771-7755; or https://ag.ny.gov/.

For North Carolina residents, the North Carolina Attorney General may be contacted at: 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-9001; 1-877-566-7226 or 1-919-716-6000; and www.ncdoj.gov.

For Rhode Island residents, the Rhode Island Attorney General may be reached at: 150 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02903; https://www.riag.ri.gov/; and 1-401-274-4400.  Under Rhode Island law, you have the right to obtain any police report filed in regard to this incident.

CONTACT: Sian Schafle, 267-930-4789

/PRNewswire -- Feb. 18, 2022/

SOURCE PracticeMax