CMS Medicare provider database exposed some health providers’ Social Security numbers

A publicly accessible CMS database used to populate a Medicare provider directory exposed some health care providers’ Social Security numbers.
The directory was created by CMS last year to help seniors look up which doctors and medical providers accept which insurance plans.
The exposed data linked some providers’ Social Security numbers with their names and other identifying information.
The database was available to the public for at least several weeks before it was taken offline.
CMS took the database offline after journalists alerted the agency to the exposure.
CMS said the issue stemmed from provider or provider-representative information being entered in the wrong places, including fields where qualification information would typically appear.
Reports in the source pool do not establish a final total of affected providers, leaving the scope of the exposure unresolved even though journalists identified at least dozens of exposed numbers and POLITICO confirmed at least 102 providers in its review.

A publicly accessible CMS database used to populate a Medicare provider directory exposed some health care providers’ Social Security numbers.
The directory was created by CMS last year to help seniors look up which doctors and medical providers accept which insurance plans.
The exposed data linked some providers’ Social Security numbers with their names and other identifying information.
The database was available to the public for at least several weeks before it was taken offline.
CMS took the database offline after journalists alerted the agency to the exposure.
CMS said the issue stemmed from provider or provider-representative information being entered in the wrong places, including fields where qualification information would typically appear.
Reports in the source pool do not establish a final total of affected providers, leaving the scope of the exposure unresolved even though journalists identified at least dozens of exposed numbers and POLITICO confirmed at least 102 providers in its review.