The University of Chicago Medical Center has been reporting a data breach since January that affected staff and patients

CHICAGO (WLS) — The University of Chicago Medical Center said a number of employees were affected by the data breach.

UCMC said in a statement that it “recently was the victim of an email security incident” that allowed personal information to be accessed. The university did not say how many people were affected.

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UCMC said that between January 4 and 30, there was unauthorized access to the email accounts of “a small number of UCMC employees.” The university said it became aware of the incident on January 6 and worked to secure the emails and stop access to them. Officials said they have also launched an investigation into the hack with the help of a cybersecurity group.

UCMC said it determined on March 28 that personal information was “available in at least one of the affected email accounts.”

The university said information obtained from the accounts includes first and last names, date of birth, Social Security numbers, passport numbers, driver's license or ID numbers, financial information including credit or debit card numbers and PIN codes, and patient information including a patient ID. Numbers, hospital account record numbers, health insurance information, health information about diagnosis and treatment, and prescription information.

UCMC said patients, their family members and others who received services from the hospital were affected by the breach.

The university said that people directly affected are being contacted on an individual basis. Officials advise employees and patients to monitor their account statements and credit reports, as well as official communications from health care providers to ensure the services you are billed for are accurate.