Ro Exposed Employee Information In a Year of Ups and Downs for the Healthcare Unicorn

The growth of digital healthcare has skyrocketed in recent years, with startups popping up all over the place. Among them is Ro, a healthcare startup that has received $1 billion in funding since its founding in 2017. However, the company, which boasts unicorn status, has experienced a bumpy year that has seen top executives leave and major staff cuts. And now, Ro has "accidentally" exposed employee information.

Ro looks to make healthcare simple, providing digital care that covers sexual health, mental health, weight management, and more. Moreover, it does its best to be as convenient as possible for customers, providing free visits, tailored plans, and ongoing patient care. But recent actions have not been as convenient for the company's employees.

The exposure came about when a security contractor uploaded a spreadsheet containing employee information to a malware detection platform. Moreover, while the incident occurred in July, the notification only went out to employees recently.

Whether it was an accident does not take away from the severity of the matter, which exposed personal information related to each individual's employment with the startup. The full extent of the information is not clear, but employee names, addresses, and bank account numbers were included in the breach notice.

As of now, there is no evidence that something has happened due to the exposure, which was limited to paid subscribers on the platform. However, the information was on the platform for five days as Ro worked to have it deleted.

While the company did notify employees, it has no plans to name the malware detection platform. A spokesperson for the company said that Ro believes in transparency and sent the notification "out of an abundance of caution." Though, there have been assurances that no customer or patient data was exposed.

Ro has had quite a bumpy year, though, with the exposed employee information only scratching the surface. In February, Ro raised $150 million in funding from existing investors. However, a week later, two of its top executives left the company.

The two executives in question were COO George Koveos and GM of Ro Pharmacy Steve Buck. The departure came months after reports of tension at the company, which included monetization and company culture issues.

Worth noting is that Koveos was allegedly responsible for members of the care team leaving the company due to "poor treatment" and a "toxic culture." On the other hand, Buck reportedly left to return to a healthcare project and would continue acting "as an outside advisor to Ro Pharmacy."

However, not everything improved after the shift in leadership. In June, Ro cut 18% of its staff, despite the impressive funding raised months earlier. While it is not unusual to see companies cutting costs and employees as the economy continues to struggle, it was an unexpected move, according to many affected.

The company sent out an email at the time explaining the reason for the layoff. It also stated that there would not be a transition period due to the company's obligation to protect patient information.

Ro did offer two months of severance pay and paid healthcare benefits, as well as help with job placement.

Spencer Hulse is the Editorial Director at Grit Daily. He is responsible for overseeing other editors and writers, day-to-day operations, and covering breaking news.