Patients of a clinic in theChicago area have filed a class action lawsuit claiming that confidentialinformation, including their HIV status, was inappropriately shared on computernetworks, the Kane County Chroniclereports.  

The complaint filed against theOpen Door Clinic of Greater Elgin names four HIV-positive men as “John Doe” andone HIV-positive woman as “Jane Doe” on behalf of a class of at least 260people. 

The lawsuit claims the clinic“negligently, wrongfully and improperly leaked” information, including HIVstatus, on “networks where the information was made readily available,accessible and retrievable to the public at large.” 

The complaint also claims identitytheft and fraud occurred as a result of the leaks. The complaint alleges theinformation was leaked between May 2008 or earlier through at least July 2009.