Bienville Orthopaedic fighting to have cyberattack lawsuits declared 'frivolous'

Orthopedic

In September, Gautier, Miss.-based Bienville Orthopaedic Specialists was hit with a lawsuit over a data breach that compromised the personal information of over 240,000 patients. Now, the practice's CEO says the medical group is contemplating its own legal action to have the suit declared "frivolous," according to an Oct. 6 report from the SunHerald.

According to the lawsuits filed by patients, the practice became aware of the breach on March 5 but took no steps to notify impacted individuals until Sept. 1. 

Lawsuits have been filed in the U.S. District Court in Gulfport, with attorneys in the suits seeking class-action status, meaning one or more plaintiffs would be selected to represent every patient affected.  

The case's presiding judge, U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola, will decide whether the patients have enough in common to be granted class-action status. 

Lee Bond, Bienville's CEO, told the SunHerald that the medical group is contemplating its own legal action to have the suits declared frivolous, which would mean sanctions against the law firms that filed them. 

"We are not aware of a single instance of any patient information being utilized," Mr. Bond told the Herald. 

He also noted that the hackers asked for a ransom but would not say whether or not the practice corporated. 

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