Anthem, the country's second-largest health insurance company, announced Wednesday that it was hacked, exposing the personal information of 80 million customers.
"Attackers gained unauthorized access to Anthem’s IT system and have obtained personal information from our current and former members such as their names, birthdays, medical IDs/social security numbers, street addresses, email addresses, and employment information, including income data,"
wrote CEO Joseph R. Swedish in a statement.
"Based on what we know now, there is no evidence that credit card or medical information, such as claims, test results, or diagnostic codes were targeted or compromised."
According to The Wall Street Journal, Anthem is one corporate parent of Blue Cross Blue Shield, selling plans in populous California and New York, as well as other states. Anthem, based in Indianapolis, changed its name from WellPoint last year.
Swedish noted that the company has contacted the FBI and private cybersecurity firms to help investigate the breach.
A spokesman from FireEye Inc., which said it had been hired by Anthem in the wake the breach, said that the hack was perpetrated "by an advanced group using custom malware."
Anthem is just the latest of a slew of high-profile company hacks in recent years. Home Depot, eBay, Chase, and other institutions with millions of customers have all suffered similar attacks.
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