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Singapore's Health Minister, Gan Kim Yong, gave a press conference on Monday, January 28, during which he announced that confidential data concerning more than 14,000 HIV-positive people – Singaporeans and foreign visitors – had been stolen. and disclosed online. Authorities believe that only one person, an American named Mikhy Farrera-Broche, is behind the HIV data breach in Singapore.
The leak concerns the details of 5,400 Singaporeans and 8,800 foreigners.
In fact, the flaw dates from 2016 and Singapore has known since Farrera-Brochez had access to confidential data (names, addresses, HIV status and other medical information), but the authorities felt that they had all been seized and secured by police.
Farrera-Brochez was expelled from Singapore in 2018 after serving a prison sentence for fraud and drug-related offenses.
The 33-year-old man behind the HIV data breach in Singapore is still in possession of HIV registry data, which he initially accessed through his partner, Ler Teck Siang, a former chief of staff. of the National Public Health Unit of Singapore. Ler himself was found guilty of helping Farrera-Brochez conceal his HIV status in order to reside in Singapore. It is believed that Ler pbaded his own blood like that of Farrera-Broche.
Under Singapore law, until 2015, anyone with HIV was not even allowed to visit the city. Now, anyone wishing to stay in Singapore for more than 90 days is subject to a mandatory medical examination, and any HIV positive person does not succeed.
At the press conference on January 28, the Minister of Health said: "I am sorry that one of our former employees has been granted access to confidential information in our HIV registry. [Ler] seems to have not respected our safety instructions. "
According to health officials, they tried to contact the 14,000 or more people on the list, but by January 28, they had spoken to only 900 of them. The health department would have set up an emergency helpline for those affected who need advice.
The location of Farrera-Brochez is currently unknown.
What do you think about this mbadive violation of HIV data in Singapore?
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