Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1368676
108 HEALTHCARE NEWS 'It's too much fun not to': Hacker who exposed US hospitals' security cameras on inspiration behind attack By Jackie Drees S wiss authorities on March 12 raided the apartment of a hacker who claimed credit for breaching San Mateo, Calif.-based se- curity camera company Verkada and accessing its live feeds of 150,000 surveillance cameras from hospitals and other companies, Bloomberg reported March 12. Tillie Kottmann said their apartment in Lucerne, Switzerland, was raided and that police took their electronic devices. The warrant was based on an alleged hack in 2020 and not the recent breach of Verkada, which exposed live video surveillance feeds from hospitals including Daytona Beach, Fla.-based Halifax Health, Texarkana, Texas- based Wadley Regional Medical Center and Tempe (Ariz.) St. Luke's Hospital, according to Bloomberg. Tillie Kottmann told Bloomberg that they hacked Verkada because they were inspired by "lots of curiosity, fighting for freedom of infor- mation and against intellectual property, a huge dose of anti-capital- ism, a hint of anarchism — and it's also just too much fun not to do it." The recent search of the hacker's apartment was part of a U.S. criminal case against Tillie Kottmann in the Western District of Washington. The hacker has been accused of unauthorized access to protected computers, identity theft and fraud. n California medical group to close, lay off 151 employees By Ayla Ellison N orthern California Medical Associates is closing its practice in Santa Rosa, Calif., May 1 and laying off 151 employees, ac- cording to documents filed with the state. The medical group cited natural disasters and financial strain as rea- sons for the closure. "We regret to inform you that three years of natural disaster and cor- porate financial decline will force Northern California Medical Associ- ates to cease doing clinical business," states a letter accompanying the group's Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act notice. The letter, signed by the group's director of human resources, states the closure is expected to be permanent. "This closing will involve cessation of all operations and termination of all employees at the site, with the exception of those continuing on in administration with closure duties," the letter states. The layoffs will affect clinical and nonclinical positions. Twenty-six physicians and seven nurse practitioners will lose their jobs when the medical practice closes, according to the letter. n 10 top healthcare companies for customer satisfaction By Hannah Mitchell T en healthcare organizations were ranked for scoring high in customer satisfaction by the Drucker Institute, according to a rank- ing published in e Wall Street Journal. For its "Management Top 250" ranking, the Drucker Institute measures organizations in five areas: customer satisfaction, employee engage- ment and development, innovation, social respon- sibility, and financial strength. Twenty-nine of the top 250 organizations are in the healthcare and life sciences sector. Here are the 10 healthcare organizations that re- ceived the highest score for customer satisfaction: 1. Amgen Overall rank: 26 2. Edwards Lifesciences Overall rank: 29 3. Bio-Rad Laboratories Overall rank: 156 4. Hologic Overall rank: 165 5. Merck Overall rank: 11 6. Eli Lilly Overall rank: 39 7. Regeneron Overall rank: 84 8. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Overall rank: 101 9. ResMed Overall rank: 105 10. Varian Medical Systems Overall rank: 131 n