SEATTLE – DECEMBER 22, 2023 – Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is notifying individuals about a recent incident involving a lost laptop.
On October 27, 2023, Fred Hutch learned that one of our providers lost their personal laptop while traveling. The provider used their laptop to access Fred Hutch email through the Microsoft Outlook application. The personal laptop was password protected and the provider initiated a remote wipe should the laptop come online.
Upon learning of the loss, Fred Hutch began an investigation which included hiring a forensic team to determine what information was in the provider’s email account. While we have no reason to believe that any of the information on the laptop was accessed, Fred Hutch is notifying affected patients out of an abundance of caution.
Fred Hutch’s investigation indicated that some patient information was included in the provider’s email, including one or more of the following: name, address, phone number, date of birth, medical record number, patient account number, date(s) of service, and/or certain clinical information related to care at Fred Hutch. For a limited number of individuals, a Social Security number may have also been included.
Fred Hutch is working to complete the investigation as quickly as possible and will be mailing letters to individuals whose information was involved beginning next week. Fred Hutch is offering complimentary credit monitoring and identity protection services to individuals whose Social Security number may have been involved. Patients are also encouraged to review statements from their health insurer and to contact their insurance company immediately if anything is inaccurate.
Fred Hutch greatly values patient trust and is committed to safeguarding personal information. We are providing additional education to our workforce on required safeguards for mobile devices and reviewing our policies and processes to help prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
If patients have questions, they are encouraged to call Fred Hutch’s dedicated call center at 1.888.723.1054, Monday through Friday, between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. PST. Additional information is available at www.fredhutch.org.
Media Contact:
media@fredhutch.org
206.667.2210
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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center unites individualized care and advanced research to provide the latest cancer treatment options while accelerating discoveries that prevent, treat and cure cancer and infectious diseases worldwide.
Based in Seattle, Fred Hutch is an independent, nonprofit organization and the only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in Washington. We have earned a global reputation for our track record of discoveries in cancer, infectious disease and basic research, including important advances in bone marrow transplantation, immunotherapy, HIV/AIDS prevention and COVID-19 vaccines. Fred Hutch operates eight clinical care sites that provide medical oncology, infusion, radiation, proton therapy and related services. Fred Hutch also serves as UW Medicine’s cancer program.