Over 30,000 veterans’ sensitive health data was compromised after a cybersecurity breach took place at a genetic testing laboratory.
News outlet FedScoop, citing an email a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) official sent to congressional staff on Monday, reported that a cybersecurity incident at the company Baylor Genetics around June 15 led to the information leak.
The outlet said this led to an unauthorized third party accessing names, dates of birth, medical testing information, lab test results, health insurance date and partial Social Security numbers.
Military.com verified the email and its contents after reaching out to the VA.
“Upon learning of the incident, VA took immediate actions to ensure that affected veterans are protected, by evaluating Baylor’s notification process and compliance with its contractual and security responsibilities,” the email said.
Baylor “immediately secured our systems, engaged leading independent cybersecurity and forensic specialists, notified law enforcement, and implemented additional security measures,” a Baylor Genetics spokesperson told FedScoop.
“There was no impact on our ability to provide genetic testing services,” they added.
How Many Veterans Were Affected
The email said that 30,263 veterans were affected in total, and 29,483 will receive mailed notices about the incident.
This mailed notice will “advise affected veterans to review account statements, explanation-of-benefits statements, and credit reports for unusual activity; enroll in the complimentary credit-monitoring and identity-protection services; and consider additional safeguards such as fraud alerts and credit freezes,” the email said.
It added that Baylor reported it was not aware of the theft or misuse of personal information related to the incident.
“VA worked with Baylor to improve the notification process and revised Baylor’s Interconnection Security Agreement to address delays in Baylor’s sharing of breach-related information with VA,” the email reportedly added.
“We are pleased to say that our systems are operational, our environment is secure, and our important work with all stakeholders continues as usual. We have also notified potentially impacted patients and employees about the event, along with regulators,” Baylor officials said.
Recent Incidents and Cuts to Cybersecurity
It is not the first time data breaches have affected veterans and active service members.
In May, Military.com reported that over 70,000 U.S. Army files with sensitive information about military personnel were leaked.
Leaked information also included maintenance work orders, building schematics, personally identifiable information of military personnel, and personally identifiable information of contractors.
At a macro level, government departments have recently made cuts to cybersecurity programs. Units tracking cyber threats in the Office of the Department of National Intelligence were cut in August 2025 as part of plans to cut staff at the agency by almost 50%. Among the cuts were units that track cyber threats.
The Department of Defense (DOD) suspended a cybersecurity compliance plan in July, citing concerns about the cost and bureaucracy involved in implementing it.
The new plan would have forced companies to pass a cybersecurity assessment from a certified third party before receiving contract awards from DOD.
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