Hackers steal data for 15 million patients, then sell it back to lab that lost it

Enlarge (credit: US Air Force/Senior Airman Katie Gieratz)

Canada's biggest provider of specialty laboratory testing services said it paid hackers an undisclosed amount for the return of personal data they stole belonging to as many as 15 million customers.

Toronto, Ontario-based LifeLabs Notified Canadian authorities of the attack on November 1. The company said a cyberattack struck computer systems that stored data for about 15 million customers. The stolen information included names, addresses, email addresses, customer logins and passwords, health card numbers, and lab tests.

The incident response, company President and CEO Charles Brown said in a statement, included "retrieving the data by making a payment." The executive added: "We did this in collaboration with experts familiar with cyber-attacks and negotiations with cyber criminals." The statement didn't say how much LifeLabs paid for the return of the data. Representatives didn't immediately respond to an email seeking the amount.

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