Healthcare systems globally have been targets for cyberattack since the beginning of the pandemic last year with incidents doubling in 2020 alone. In this case, HSE has had national and local systems impacted, with clerical staff having to revert (where possible) to paper-based systems. In some cases, hospitals have warned of significant disruption. In the middle of a pandemic, this is the last thing a hospital eco-system needs. The central patient booking, and administrative system is core to how a hospital operates.
HSE chief executive Paul Reid said officials were working with republics police force the ‘Garda Síochána’, the Defence Forces and third party cyber security experts to respond to the attack. Garda Síochána said the HSE was the lead agency in dealing with the attack but it was liasing with the health body and the National Cyber Security Centre.
At this stage it’s unclear if critical equipment in intensive care units and other ‘isolated’ infrastructure in hospitals have been affected by the attack, but the events can be very distressing for instance, with cancer care, where patients await results or experience delays in treatment adding to the…
