US diagnostics giant Quest Diagnostics has disclosed a cyber breach in which an unauthorised party appears to have accessed certain patient records, adding to a run of attacks on the healthcare sector.
The company said the full scope of the intrusion is still under investigation.
Quest said on Thursday that it had detected unauthorised access to its Quanum LSM system, which some of its clients use to place test orders and to receive and look up results. In a regulatory filing, it said it learnt of the incident on Wednesday.
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It has notified federal law enforcement authorities and begun its cybersecurity incident response procedures.
As things stand, the company believes the intruder accessed certain patient records. It has not said how many patients may be affected, what kind of information was exposed or how the attackers got in.
On its website, Quest said it paused access to the system as soon as it discovered the incident and is working towards "full restoration" as soon as possible.
Providers who order tests through direct-customer laboratory information system interfaces or electronic medical record systems can carry on as before, it said, because those channels were not affected.
The company stressed that the incident has not materially disrupted its business. Its core operations remain up and running, it said.
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Quest also reported third-quarter earnings on Thursday, with revenue of $3.10 billion, ahead of analyst estimates of $3.05 billion, according to LSEG data. Even so, its shares fell 3.7% to $230 in premarket trading as investors weighed the breach.
The disclosure comes as healthcare firms face mounting pressure from hackers. Medical device makers Abbott, Stryker, Medtronic and Boston Scientific have been hit by cyberattacks, Reuters reported.
Drugmaker Novo Nordisk and drug-delivery equipment supplier West Pharmaceutical Services have also faced threats.
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Laboratories hold some of the most sensitive health information in the system, from diagnoses to test histories. A breach at a platform that connects labs with doctors and clinics can therefore raise questions about privacy and the safety of patient data well beyond the company itself.
Quest has not said whether it has identified who was behind the attack or whether any ransom demand was made.
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