A pending class-action lawsuit in Ohio demonstrates the increased vulnerability of nursing homes targeted by hackers seeking valuable patient and employee data. A former employee of Atrium Centers is asking a federal judge to certify a multistate lawsuit over the skilled nursing provider’s “failures” to secure, encrypt or destroy sensitive and protected information. Plaintiff Shannon Shawanokasic of Wisconsin claims her data was among the information stolen in an October attack, and that she is now spending hours a day monitoring her personal accounts and sorting through spam sent to the phone and email contacts she had on file with Atrium. She is seeking damages and restitution for herself and others caught up in the breach, as well as a court order forcing Atrium to adopt stronger cybersecurity defenses. Atrium is headquartered in Ohio and also has facilities in Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin. The lawsuit alleges the provider should have done more given that data breaches are “rampant” in healthcare. “Data breaches such as the one experienced by Defendant Atrium have become so notorious that the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Secret Service have issued a warning to potential targets so they are aware of, can prepare for, and hopefully can ward off a potential attack,” said the lawsuit, filed Tuesday in the US District Court for Southern Ohio. “The significant increase in attacks in the healthcare industry, and attendant risk of future attacks, is widely know