Massive ransomware cyberattack in U.K. Hits 16 Health Institutions, many doctors reported that they could not retrieve their patients ’ files, but not to worry - no patient information was looked at or compromised

Perhaps doctors and nurses are clairvoyant?  Who needs records, anyway?Cyberattack in U.K. Hits 16 Health InstitutionsNew York Times DAN BILEFSKY and RAPHAEL MINDER MAY 12, 2017https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/12/world/europe/uk-national-health-service-cyberattack.html LONDON — An extensive cyberattack hit Britain’s National Health Service on Friday,blocking doctors from gaining access to patient files, causing emergency rooms to divert patients and stoking fears about hackers ’ ability to wreak havoc on vital public services.Spanish and Portuguese companies, including Telef ónica, Spain’s largest telecom operator, experienced a similar attack on Friday, and there were reports of so-called ransomware attacks in a number of countries, including Italy and Ukraine. It was not immediately clear if the attacks were coordinated or related.The attack on the National Health Service seemed the most serious,since it had life-or-death implications for hospitals and ambulance services. Reuters reported that employees had been warned about the ransomware threat earlier on Friday.Tom Donnelly, a spokesman for N.H.S. Digital, the arm of the health service that handles technology, said in a phone interview that 16 organizations, including “hospitals and other kinds of clinician services,” had been hit by a cyberattack.“It is still ongoing,” he said. “We were made aware of it this afternoon.”It is becoming clear that dependence on networked information ...
Source: Health Care Renewal - Category: Health Management Tags: cyberattack healthcare IT risk healthcare IT utopianism NHS no information was looked at or compromised Patient care has not been compromised ransomware Source Type: blogs