NEWS & KNOWLEDGE

Helsinki, Finland (CNN Business)The confidential records of thousands of psychotherapy patients in Finland have been hacked and some are now facing the threat of blackmail.

Attackers were able to steal records related to therapy sessions, as well as patients' personal information including social security numbers and addresses, according to Vastaamo, the country's largest private psychotherapy center. The stolen records do not spell out specific discussions with patients, but they do include care plans and narrower professional entries.

Authorities are working to track down patients who received emails threatening to disclose personal information unless the recipient pays the blackmailer. Some of the records have already leaked online.

Finnish police are working with other agencies to investigate the data breach that targeted Vastaamo, which treats roughly 40,000 patients across the country. Police believe the number of affected patients could rise to the tens of thousands.

"We are grateful for how various actors in society have helped the police," said Marko Leponen, a detective inspector at Finland's National Bureau of Investigation. "It is particularly great that citizens are urging all not to share this material on social media. Sharing such information fulfills the essential elements of an offence," he added.

Some of the victims have received emails demanding payments in bitcoin to prevent the public disclosure of their personal information, which authorities are discouraging victims from doing. Instead, agencies are asking those patients to save extortion emails and other possible evidence they may have received and file a police report. Police have also discouraged people from paying the hackers, saying it will not ensure their data remains private.

- Oct 29, 2020-