In the aftermath of a disruptive cyberattack affecting US pharmacies and hospitals, UnitedHealth GroupUNH

, the parent company of Change Healthcare, has confirmed that a hacker group stole sensitive medical data from a “substantial proportion of people in America.” Although UnitedHealth paid $22M to one of the hacking groups involved, the real cost will be much higher.

• According to UnitedHealth, the attack, which involved the theft of 6TB of personally identifiable information as claimed by hacker group ALPHV, could cost the company $1.6B this year.
• To address concerns among customers affected by the breach, the company has set up a website and support line, but direct communication with affected customers has not yet been initiated.

Hacker blitz: 2023 marked the worst year for data breaches on record, but 2024’s hacks are already becoming a bigger deal in scale and sensitivity. The incident involving Change Healthcare could potentially rank among the worst hacks in American history. However, other major breaches — such as the recent attack on AT&TT

, which compromised the social security numbers of 73M customers — indicate that 2024 might just surpass last year’s record-breaking cyberattacks.