Class action lawsuit filed against CareNet Medical | News
Plaintiff Jeanette Coniglio, a Greenville resident, alleges in her complaint that she was the victim of identity theft five times in 2022, with the debit card she used at CareNet offices being charged with fraudulent charges totaling approximately $400.
The medical group, which provides obstetric and gynecological services, informed customers in June 2023 that cybercriminals had gained access to customers’ data in a data breach that occurred between May 9, 2022, and June 4, 2022.
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The company subsequently conducted an investigation that was completed in April 2023 and warned its customers in June 2023 that “unauthorized individuals had removed certain files and folders from parts of its network that contained protected health information of a limited number of individuals.”
Coniglio’s class action lawsuit, filed Friday in Schenectady County Superior Court, alleges that CareNet failed to adequately protect its computer systems before the 2022 data breach.
The complaint alleges that the company, which has offices in Schenectady and Clifton Park, failed to adequately train its employees on cybersecurity measures and failed to maintain adequate security protocols to protect patients’ financial and medical information.
“Before this data breach, patients’ private information was just that – private,” the complaint states. “Not anymore. Now patients’ private information is forever exposed and unsafe.”
As of press time, CareNet Medical Group did not respond to a request for comment on the complaint.
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The class action lawsuit seeks damages from the company. The plaintiff is asking the court to recognize the case as a class action against CareNet and for Coniglio to act as a representative of the class.
CareNet informed patients in June 2023 that information such as their names, social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, bank account numbers, medical reference numbers, Medicare numbers, and health insurance information may have been compromised in the data breach. The company noted that not all information was affected for every patient.
CareNet offered credit monitoring memberships to patients whose Social Security numbers were exposed in the data breach.
The class action lawsuit notes that the data breach exposed personal information of 10,059 former and current CareNet patients. The lawsuit also notes that patients were not notified of the incident until 389 days after the breach began.
Coniglio alleges in his complaint that the credit monitoring services offered by the healthcare group did not adequately respond to the data breach.
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“Such awards are wholly insufficient to compensate Plaintiff and class members for the injuries Defendant has caused them,” the lawsuit states.
Coniglio is seeking a jury trial in his lawsuit, with the plaintiff seeking both damages and punitive damages.
The complaint alleges that between May and July 2022, there were five unauthorized charges on Coniglio’s Pioneer Bank debit card, with five charges for Uber and Lyft rides totaling approximately $400 being made without the victim’s knowledge.
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