Police in the eastern Shandong province have taken three people into custody for leaking the personal information of 6,685 patients at Jiaozhou Central Hospital, The Beijing News reported Sunday.
According to Jiaozhou authorities, the individuals initially obtained the information for unspecified work-related reasons. They then shared the documents on WeChat, China’s ubiquitous messaging platform, which led to the information being widely circulated online. The culprits have been put under administrative detention for “invading citizens’ privacy,” the police announcement said.
Cases of people’s personal information being leaked online occasionally make headlines in China. In 2016, hackers stole thousands of baby-monitor videos from a hospital in the eastern Anhui province. The following year, a hospital in the southern city of Guangzhou shared an unauthorized account — including graphic photos — of a transgender teen who required emergency treatment after a self-administered surgery went wrong. (Image: People Visual)
Download the new Sixth Tone app at the App Store or Google Play
(Copy URL and open in browser)