{"id":96765,"date":"2019-09-19T08:47:30","date_gmt":"2019-09-19T15:47:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/securingtomorrow.mcafee.com\/?p=96765"},"modified":"2025-08-12T20:16:08","modified_gmt":"2025-08-13T03:16:08","slug":"medical-data-exposure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mcafee.com\/blogs\/privacy-identity-protection\/medical-data-exposure\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Your Medical Data Safe? 16 Million Medical Scans Left Out in the Open"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you ever needed to get an\u00a0X-ray or an MRI for an injury? It turns out that these images, as well as the health data<\/a> of millions of Americans, have been sitting unprotected on the internet and available to anyone with basic computer expertise. According to ProPublica<\/a>, these exposed records affect more than 5 million patients in the U.S.\u00a0and millions more across the globe, equating to 16 million scans worldwide that are publicly available online.<\/p>\n

This exposure affects data used in doctor’s offices, medical imaging centers, and mobile X-ray services. What\u2019s more, the exposed data also contained other personal information such as dates of birth, details on personal physicians, and procedures received by patients, bringing the potential threat of identity theft closer to reality. And while researchers found no evidence of patient data being copied from these systems and published elsewhere, the implications of this much personal data exposed to the masses could be substantial.<\/p>\n

Protect Yourself from Fraud and Cyberattacks<\/h2>\n

To help users lock down their data and protect themselves from fraud and other cyberattacks, we\u2019ve provided the following security tips:<\/p>\n