Skip to content
Network USA

HHS OCR report ยท 2017

Synergy Specialists Medical Group, Inc / Jay S. Berenter, DPM data breach

Synergy Specialists Medical Group, Inc / Jay S. Berenter, DPM, a healthcare provider in California, reported a breach affecting 569 individuals to HHS OCR on Jan 27, 2017.

OCR report facts

Covered entity
Synergy Specialists Medical Group, Inc / Jay S. Berenter, DPM
Entity type
Healthcare Provider
State
California
Individuals affected
569
Submission date
Jan 27, 2017
Type of breach
Hacking/IT Incident
Location of breached information
Email
Business associate present
No
Status
Archive (closed)

OCR description

An employee of the covered entity (CE), Synergy Specialists Medical Group/Jay S. Berenter, opened a phishing email that caused patients to receive false emails from the CE. The breach of the email account affected 569 individuals. Of the 569 individuals, the CE impermissibly disclosed a subset of 71 patient names and email addresses when it failed to blind copy those names and email addresses when notifying the patients of the fraudulent email. The types of protected health information (PHI...

Text as published on the HHS OCR breach portal.

Frequently asked questions

How many people were affected by the Synergy Specialists Medical Group, Inc / Jay S. Berenter, DPM data breach?

The report to HHS OCR lists 569 individuals affected.

When was it reported to HHS?

It was submitted to HHS OCR on Jan 27, 2017.

What type of breach was it?

The OCR portal lists the type of breach as Hacking/IT Incident, with the breached information located in: Email.

Is the investigation still open?

No. The report is in the OCR portal archive, which holds reports where OCR has closed its review.

Is a breach notice letter from Synergy Specialists Medical Group, Inc / Jay S. Berenter, DPM legitimate?

This site cannot verify letters. Check the sender against the organisation's official website and the HHS OCR breach portal, and avoid calling numbers or clicking links only listed in an unexpected message. See our guide on what to do after a data breach notice.

Source: HHS OCR Breach Portal, OCR export October 2026. Network USA is not affiliated with HHS or Synergy Specialists Medical Group, Inc / Jay S. Berenter, DPM.