Home Economy Economic Activity Calif.-based tech firm resolves allegations of violating False Claims Act for $9.8M

Calif.-based tech firm resolves allegations of violating False Claims Act for $9.8M

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PBN Staff

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07/31/2025

7RnotPu0-4cTk5vLT-co4oOI0M-dKKfjIni-9zuRNzNb-DistrictCourt — ILLUMINA INC., a California-based company, has agreed to pay $9.8 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act, acting U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island Sara Miron Bloom announced Thursday. / COURTESY U.S. DISTRICT COURT

PROVIDENCE – A California-based tech company has agreed to pay $9.8 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act for selling genomic-sequencing systems with critical security weaknesses to the federal government, acting U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island Sara Miron Bloom announced Thursday. The settlement reached in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, resolves

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PROVIDENCE – A California-based tech company has agreed to pay $9.8 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act for selling genomic-sequencing systems with critical security weaknesses to the federal government, acting U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island Sara Miron Bloom announced Thursday.

The settlement reached in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, resolves allegations that, between February 2016 and September 2023, Illumina Inc., headquartered in San Diego, sold government agencies genomic sequencing systems with software that had cybersecurity vulnerabilities, without having an adequate security program.

The reason why this case was tried in Rhode Island was unclear. Representatives from the U.S. attorney for Rhode Island’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The government contends that Illumina knowingly failed to incorporate product cybersecurity in its software design, development, installation and on-market monitoring; failed to properly support and resource personnel, systems and processes tasked with product security; failed to adequately correct design features that introduced cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the genomic sequencing systems; and falsely represented that the software on the genomic sequencing systems adhered to cybersecurity standards, including standards of the International Organization for Standardization and National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Erica Lenore, a former director for platform management for Illumina who was the whistleblower in this case, will receive $1.9 million as part of her share of the settlement.

The settlement was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island, with assistance from DCIS, the Army Criminal Investigation Division, the HHS Office of the Inspector General, and the Department of Commerce Office of the Inspector General.