Covid-19 Test Result Leak Spotlights Email Security Risks

More than 200 people breathed a sigh of relief when they received an email from the city of Los Angeles with their negative Covid-19 test results.

But there was one problem. City staff accidentally sent out a mass email without blind copying the recipients. That meant each patient had one another’s email address.

The incident highlights the potential security risks that emailed test results pose as governments and industry struggle to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

“In a public health crisis, like the one we are in now, the right to privacy has to be balanced against the need to protect ...