Large-scale ransomware data breach at Australian prescription company MediSecure

The Australian government issued a warning on Thursday about a “large-scale ransomware data breach” that has compromised healthcare data across the country.

MediSecure, a prescription company, revealed the breach on its homepage, indicating that it has affected “the personal and health information of individuals.”

According to MediSecure, “early indicators suggest the incident originated from one of our third-party vendors,” and acknowledged the concern this breach would cause for its customers.

“MediSecure understands the importance of transparency and will provide further updates via our website as soon as more information becomes available. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this time,” the company stated on its website.

Australia’s national cybersecurity coordinator, an office established following the Medibank incident, confirmed that the government is aware of the MediSecure breach and that the Australian federal police are investigating the matter.

“We are in the very preliminary stages of our response and there is limited detail to share at this stage, but I will continue to provide updates as we progress while working closely with the affected commercial organization to address the impacts caused by the incident,” wrote the coordinator, Michelle McGuinness, on social media.