Quest Diagnostics has disclosed a cyber breach involving its Quanum Lab Services Manager platform, which doctors and other clients use to order tests and access laboratory results. The medical testing company said it discovered unauthorized access on Wednesday and believes that certain patient records were likely accessed, although the exact number of affected people and the specific data exposed remain unknown.
In a regulatory filing on Thursday, Quest said it had launched cybersecurity incident-response procedures to contain the activity and investigate the breach. The company also notified federal law enforcement and engaged external cybersecurity specialists to support its response. Quest has not said whether the attackers obtained names, contact details, test results, insurance information, or other sensitive health data.
The incident is significant because the Quanum platform sits at the centre of clinical workflows for some healthcare providers. It allows authorised clients to place test orders and receive or review patient results, meaning a compromise could expose information that is both personal and medically sensitive. Quest said the breach has not materially disrupted its core operations or its ability to serve patients, but the company has paused access to the affected system while it investigates.
This is not the first time Quest Diagnostics has faced a major data-security incident. In 2016, the company said an online breach exposed lab results and contact information for about 34,000 people. In 2019, personal information belonging to roughly 11.9 million Quest patients was affected through a separate hack at American Medical Collection Agency, a billing collections provider. The latest case is notable because Quest has identified unauthorized access directly within one of its own systems rather than through a third-party vendor.
The breach comes amid a wider rise in cyberattacks affecting healthcare and other essential industries. Quest confirmed to The Associated Press that this incident was not related to the recently disclosed PHP vulnerabilities that have prompted urgent security patches across much of the internet. For patients and healthcare providers, the case highlights the need for strong access controls, rapid breach detection, and clear communication when medical data systems are targeted. Until Quest completes its investigation, affected individuals should remain alert for suspicious emails, calls, or messages that request personal or medical information.
In a regulatory filing on Thursday, Quest said it had launched cybersecurity incident-response procedures to contain the activity and investigate the breach. The company also notified federal law enforcement and engaged external cybersecurity specialists to support its response. Quest has not said whether the attackers obtained names, contact details, test results, insurance information, or other sensitive health data.
The incident is significant because the Quanum platform sits at the centre of clinical workflows for some healthcare providers. It allows authorised clients to place test orders and receive or review patient results, meaning a compromise could expose information that is both personal and medically sensitive. Quest said the breach has not materially disrupted its core operations or its ability to serve patients, but the company has paused access to the affected system while it investigates.
This is not the first time Quest Diagnostics has faced a major data-security incident. In 2016, the company said an online breach exposed lab results and contact information for about 34,000 people. In 2019, personal information belonging to roughly 11.9 million Quest patients was affected through a separate hack at American Medical Collection Agency, a billing collections provider. The latest case is notable because Quest has identified unauthorized access directly within one of its own systems rather than through a third-party vendor.
The breach comes amid a wider rise in cyberattacks affecting healthcare and other essential industries. Quest confirmed to The Associated Press that this incident was not related to the recently disclosed PHP vulnerabilities that have prompted urgent security patches across much of the internet. For patients and healthcare providers, the case highlights the need for strong access controls, rapid breach detection, and clear communication when medical data systems are targeted. Until Quest completes its investigation, affected individuals should remain alert for suspicious emails, calls, or messages that request personal or medical information.
This article has been indexed from CySecurity News – Latest Information Security and Hacking Incidents
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Quest Diagnostics Reports Cyber Breach Affecting Patient Records