What happened about this data incident
On Monday, 17 August 2026, we identified an incident of unauthorised access to Brighton East Dental Clinic data stored on our on-premises file servers through our firewall security protection. We immediately took steps to contain the incident. Based on the information we have assessed, it appears that the event occurred early April 2026.
We were alerted of a potential incident by the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) on Thursday, 13 August 2026. We engaged cyber experts and could not find evidence of a recent compromise. On Monday, 17 August 2026 we analysed the data leaked and believe that the data was accessed in early April 2026.
We have undertaken forensic analysis to determine what information was accessed and the extent of the incident.
What information was involved?
Our investigation indicates that information relating to you was included in the data that was accessed in the incident. This includes:
- Patient contact information: Name, address, date of birth, email address, mobile phone number(s)
- Patient treatment plans, oral X-rays, referrals, treatment history
- Patient private health insurance details including membership numbers
The information involved relates to records from before April 2026.
If you need support contact IDCARE
Brighton East Dental Clinic has partnered with IDCARE (www.idcare.org), Australia’s national identity and cyber support service.
IDCARE provides specialist support specifically for identity compromise, misuse, and exploitation, offering personalised guidance to help assess risk and support recovery where personal information may be at risk.
IDCARE’s services are provided at no cost to you.
What we have done
- As soon as we found out about the incident, we immediately contained the unauthorised access and secured the affected systems. Remediation work has been completed.
- We have undertaken forensic analysis to establish what information was accessed.
- We believe that the information involved relates to records from before April 2026.
- We have engaged external advisers to provide advice and assistance, including notifications to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC), the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC), Victoria Police and other relevant authorities as required.
- To reduce the risk of this type of incident happening again, we are continuing to assess the incident to identify any further improvements we can make on our systems going forward.
We are continuing to work with relevant privacy and cyber security authorities as our investigation progresses.
As a precaution, we recommend that you:
- Remain vigilant: Be cautious of unexpected calls, texts or emails, particularly anything asking you to confirm personal information, click a link or make a payment.
- Don’t click unexpected links or open attachments: This applies even if a message appears to come from Brighton East Dental, your bank or another organisation you trust. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s Scamwatch initiative has some useful guidance on protecting yourself from scams here: https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/get-help/protect-yourself-from-scams.
- Check before responding: If you receive communication claiming to be from Brighton East Dental and are unsure whether it is genuine, please contact us directly using our official contact details.
- Your physical safety: If you are worried that unauthorised access to your personal address may create a risk to you of physical harm, please contact the police immediately.
We are very sorry this has happened and for any concern it may cause. Protecting the privacy and security of our patients is extremely important to us.
We will contact you if our investigation identifies any further information that is relevant to you or if there are any additional steps you need to take.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, please contact us at 03 9578 8500 or info@bedc.com.au