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Irony: (noun) an outcome of events contrary to what was, or might have been, expected

A Maryland federal court–in the course of a medical identity theft investigation–inadvertently published on the Internet the names, birthdates, and health care policy numbers of 226 people. Ninety-two Social Security numbers were also included it the publicly accessible information.

Identity theft experts say the data breach is more than ironic.

“It’s totally unacceptable,” said Lillie Coney, associate director of Electronic Privacy Information Center, a Washington-based lobbying group. “Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the United States and it’s primarily driven by criminals obtaining Social Security numbers.”

The patient information was contained within an FBI request for search warrants for the offices and files of two Washington area doctors, Ali Al-Attar and Abdul Fadul. The doctors are accused of using their patients’ information to bilk insurance companies out of more than $2.3 million for services the patients never received.

Many of the patients are employees at the Egyptian embassy; four of them are designated as senior embassy employees by the U.S. State Department of State.

According to a now-sealed statement by FBI agent Marisa L. Perez, the doctors billed an insurance company using the identity of one patient hundreds of times between May 2007 and August 2008.

Billing from the doctors claimed that patient visited one of their three clinics every 26 days during that period, and had the same tests performed at each appointment. The insurance company paid Al-Attar and Fadul $55,000 for the more than 400 procedures the doctors claimed they performed.