Massive data breach at health insurer Anthem could affect 80 million people

Up to 80 million people could be affected by a data breach at Anthem. — (Image credit: David McNew/Getty Images)

The health insurance giant Anthem announced Wednesday that its database was hacked, potentially exposing the personal information of up to 80 million customers and employees, including names, birthdays, social security numbers, email addresses, and income data.

The company said that financial information, including credit card numbers, was not compromised, and it will notify those affected individually, CNBC reports.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.