Illumina Fined $9.8M for Cybersecurity Flaws in Genomic Tools Sold to U.S. Agencies

Illumina Inc., a leading genomic sequencing company, has agreed to pay $9.8 million to settle federal allegations that it knowingly sold cybersecurity-vulnerable genomic sequencing systems to government agencies while misrepresenting their security standards.

The settlement resolves claims spanning over seven years of alleged violations that put sensitive genetic information at risk across multiple federal departments.

Settlement Details and Timeline

The Delaware-based corporation, headquartered in California, faced allegations under the False Claims Act for conduct occurring between February 2016 and September 2023.

During this period, federal prosecutors contended that Illumina sold genomic sequencing systems containing software with significant cybersecurity vulnerabilities to government agencies without maintaining adequate security programs to identify and address these flaws.

The Department of Justice alleged that Illumina systematically failed to incorporate proper cybersecurity measures into its software design, development, installation, and ongoing market monitoring processes.

Additionally, the company allegedly failed to adequately support personnel and systems ...