A former employee of Evoke Wellness is facing several charges after allegedly stealing the identities of hundreds of patients at the addiction treatment center.
The 33-year-old, who has not been publicly named, worked at Evoke Wellness in Hilliard from November 2021 to July 2024. The facility offers treatment for various substance use disorders, including opioid addiction.
During his time at the center, the employee reportedly accessed and stole large amounts of personal data from patients, including names, addresses, birthdates, and Social Security numbers. According to The Columbus Dispatch, this information, affecting at least 240 individuals, was then sold on the dark web.
Authorities say most victims are located in central Ohio, but they believe the number of affected individuals may extend nationwide.
With such sensitive information, cybercriminals can commit identity theft, take out loans, or engage in other fraudulent activities. The stolen data has allegedly been used to purchase vehicles, apply for credit cards, and buy cryptocurrency, The Dispatch reports.
This incident is not the first controversy involving Evoke Wellness. The addiction treatment provider has also faced scrutiny for questionable marketing practices.
In January 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit against Evoke Wellness and its executives, Jonathan Mosley and James Hull, accusing them of exploiting vulnerable individuals through deceptive advertising.
The FTC claims that Evoke Wellness ran over 68,500 misleading Google ads designed to divert people seeking help to its own call center, often by using the names of competing clinics as keywords to mislead searchers into thinking they were contacting those other providers.
These actions, according to the FTC, were a deliberate attempt to manipulate individuals struggling with addiction into choosing Evoke Wellness over other legitimate treatment centers.
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