Hack that paralysed US healthcare turns up scrutiny on insurer

UnitedHealth, which has a market value of US$451bil (RM2.15 trillion), has estimated that the Feb 21 attack could reduce its profit by as much as US$1.6bil (RM7.62bil) this year, making it one of the costliest hacks ever. — Reuters

When a cyberattack on Change Healthcare paralysed much of the US healthcare system, some lawmakers saw it as proof its parent company, UnitedHealth Group Inc, was too big.

UnitedHealth chief executive Andrew Witty saw it differently. He has said that the company’s size kept the hack, which crippled a network that handled US$2 trillion (RM9.53 trillion) in health claims a year, from being more harmful. It was “important for the country that we own Change Healthcare”, Witty said earlier this month.