Dental insurance provider Delta Dental of California is facing a class action lawsuit over an alleged data breach.
The named plaintiff, Rosemarie Baldovinos, filed the suit on behalf of herself and other patients whose personal and medical information was reportedly exposed.
The lawsuit accuses Delta Dental of California and affiliates of failing to adequately secure sensitive patient data, including names, social security numbers, and health information. According to the complaint, this information was stored unencrypted on the company's network and became accessible via the internet.
The alleged breach occurred between May 30 and May 31, 2023. The company reportedly learned about it on June 1, 2023. However, patients were only notified about the incident in December 2023 and January 2024.
The plaintiff argues that Delta Dental of California had a legal duty to protect this data from unauthorized access. She claims that due to the company's negligence, hackers could now sell the exposed data on the dark web. This puts affected patients at risk of identity theft and misuse of their sensitive information.
The lawsuit was filed in San Francisco County Superior Court on Jan. 23.
The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Jason M. Wucetich and Dimitrios V. Korovilas, of Wucetich & Korovilas, of El Segundo.
Editor's note: This article has been revised from a previous edition to correctly identify the defendant in the lawsuit as Delta Dental of California.