Massive Change Healthcare Data Breach Affects 190 Million Americans: What You Need to Know | PYMNTS.com

The recent ransomware attack on Change Healthcare has turned out to be much worse than initially thought. It affected around 190 million individuals—almost double the original estimate. This incident has now been labeled as the largest medical data breach in U.S. history.

Tyler Mason, a spokesperson for UnitedHealth, confirmed that Change Healthcare has determined approximately 190 million people were impacted by this cyberattack. They stated that most of those affected have already received notifications about the breach.

Importantly, UnitedHealth mentioned they are not aware of any misuse of the compromised information. They have not found any electronic medical records publicly shared during their investigations.

This breach caused significant disruptions across the American healthcare system. Change Healthcare is a major player in processing health claims and managing a wealth of medical and patient data. As a result, the attack led to lengthy outages that affected operations nationwide.

The hackers stole a large amount of healthcare information and even published some of it online. To prevent further leaks, Change Healthcare reportedly paid at least two ransoms. Initially, UnitedHealth estimated that around 100 million people were affected, highlighting how much larger the incident actually was.

This attack is not an isolated incident. Last year saw several significant cybersecurity breaches, including one at National Public Data, which compromised the information of 2.9 billion individuals. Another notable breach involved several major companies, including AT&T and LiveNation.

These cybersecurity events reveal serious vulnerabilities businesses face today. As we move into 2025, learning from these incidents is crucial for protecting sensitive information.

In related news, there’s been a noticeable rise in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in cybersecurity. Research shows that the number of companies using AI-powered security systems has tripled, with 55% of chief operating officers now adopting these automated management systems. This increase signals a shift toward more advanced security measures to combat rising threats.