The Ramsey County government in Minnesota is notifying 8,700 clients of its Family Health Division that their data was exposed in a December ransomware attack, according to a Jan. 29 Pioneer Press report. 

Ramsey County’s tech services vendor Netgain Technology was hit by ransomware on or about Dec. 2, which gave hackers access to the family health division’s patients’ medical information.  

After discovering the incident, Ramsey County suspended all use of Netgain’s application, moved to manual backup procedures and launched an investigation into the breach. Netgain determined that the ransomware affected data within the application Ramsey County’s Family Health Division uses to document home visits. 

Information affected by the incident included names, addresses, dates of birth, health insurance details and medical details. Social Security numbers may also have been exposed for a small number of individuals, according to a Jan. 29 notice to patients. 

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