UCLA Chancellor Gene Block sent this communication to the campus community today.
To the Campus Community:
UCLA Health announced today that it was the victim of a cyber attack. The attackers gained access to parts of the computer network that contain personal and medical information, but there is no evidence at this time that they actually acquired any individual’s personal or medical information. We continue to investigate this incident.
It is possible that the personal and medical information of as many as 4.5 million persons may have been affected by this intrusion. UCLA Health is working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and has launched its own investigation. Additionally, UCLA is engaged in a comprehensive effort to investigate computer systems across campus to ensure the integrity of all UCLA data and protect further against future attacks. These efforts are being led by Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Scott Waugh.
Patient confidentiality and the protection of personal information are critically important to UCLA Health. We sincerely regret the impact this attack may have on affected individuals and have dedicated significant resources to assist members of our UCLA community who will have questions and concerns about how this attack may potentially affect them personally.
Beginning today, we will be notifying on a rolling basis those potentially affected by the cyber attack with information on how to access these resources, which include 12 months of identity theft recovery and restoration services as well as additional healthcare identity protection tools. Individuals whose Social Security number or Medicare ID number was stored on the affected parts of the network will also receive 12 months of credit monitoring. These services are being provided to affected individuals at no cost.
UCLA has established a website and a hotline providing access to updated information about the resources mentioned above. The website address is: www.myidcare.com/uclaprotection. The hotline is: 877-534-5972 (open 6 a.m. - 6 p.m. Pacific time through this weekend and M-F starting next week).
Again, while there is no indication at this time that any individual’s personal or medical information was acquired in this cyber attack, we understand and are seeking to address the concerns it will raise for those potentially affected. Please know that UCLA Health is committed to the safeguarding of patient information. We take this attack very seriously and are working diligently to prevent similar attacks in the future.
Sincerely,
Gene D. Block
Chancellor
