Ransomware attack in Indiana hits multispecialty practice

SamSam malware cripples 50-provider Allied Physicians of Michiana for less than a week.


Allied Physicians of Michiana, a 50-provider multispecialty practice in South Bend, Ind., suffered a ransomware attack on May 17 that was caused by a SamSam malware variant.

Records from an undisclosed number of patients were temporarily affected by the incident.

On May 21, the practice in a notification to local media said the “incident has been successfully contained at this time.”

When the attack came, the organization shut down its network and engaged its incident responder firm, its outside counsel and other professionals; it was able to restore data in a secure format without significant disruption of services.

Also See: HHS warns SamSam ransomware is still ravaging healthcare


Allied Physicians continues to work with local law enforcement and the FBI to define the scope of the attack. Forensic activity so far has confirmed that protected health information was not compromised. “The FBI has previously stated in response to similar attacks perpetrated by these actors that their primary goal is to extract a ransom payment,” the organization says. “The Company declines to confirm whether a ransom was paid, or, if so, the amount.”

Since the attack, the organization has taken steps to prevent a reoccurrence. The practice says it will provide additional information about the breach as necessary. The practice declined to respond to several questions from Health Data Management about the incident.

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