Detroit Police Investigating Stolen Files

Detroit police are looking into two separate breaches of consumer data belonging to the city’s health department, according to The Detroit News. The first breach involved two variables that aren’t wholly unfamiliar to those who follow accidental data disclosures: a flash drive and an automobile.

According to the paper, the flash drive was stolen from a health employee’s car in late October. It contained “files with birth certificate information for babies born in 2008 and the first half of 2009 whose parents reside in the 48202 and 48205 ZIP codes.” The files contained “important information such as mother’s health conditions and names, father’s names, addresses, Medicaid numbers and Social Security numbers,” according to a statement on the city of Detroit’s Web site. Likewise, “disclosure of this personal information could result in illegal and unauthorized use such as identity theft to the individuals on record.”

The second breach occurred in November, when five computers were stolen from the Herman Kiefer Health Complex, “one of which contained 2008 Medicare and Medicaid seasonal flu billing information,” according to Crain’s Detroit Business.

The city’s already begun the process of notifying 5,000 people whose information was stolen (Chicago Tribune suggests an estimated 10,000 residents could be at risk).  A police spokesman tells The Detroit News it’s unclear whether the two incidents are connected.

A woman contacted by WDIV’s Web site, www.clickondetroit.com, has a plea for whoever took the information. “It's wrong. Whoever did it please turn it in. Don't use the information to hurt more people,” Serena McCloud is quoted. There’s no word on whether data was encrypted in either of the cases—as a precautionary measure, that’s typically a good idea.

The Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion suggests that anyone who received a breach letter or who has questions about the incident can contact the department starting Thursday between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at 877-737-4780.