Your contributions will help us keep delivering the stories that matter to you
The HSE is fighting to continue today following a « sophisticated » ransomware attack which the HSE boss described as a « serious incident » and the Irish government as « possibly the most significant cyber attack on the Irish state » Healthcare.
The HSE was made aware of the attack during the night and has shut down all national and local IT systems to protect them from encryption by attackers.
As computers are shut down as a precaution, today Some Health Services Affected: The severity of the disruption varies by hospital and service.
The HSE has confirmed that a ransom has been requested but is not being paid in accordance with government policy.
Paul Reid, CEO from HSE said it was a « fairly sophisticated » attack, a « serious incident » for the healthcare sector, and a « human-powered » cyber attack. He said information technology systems and data stored on central servers are being targeted.
Minister of State for Public Procurement and eGovernment Ossian Smyth told RTÉ’s News At One that the attack was not spying and a international attack.
He said the motive was to encrypt private data and threaten to publish the data if the ransom was not paid.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said tonight it would take « a few days » to complete Assess the impact of the cyberattack.
He was also aware that no ransom would be paid and said it would be dealt with in a « methodical manner ».
Security sources have said the most likely Suspects for the attack are criminals who are “state actors”.
“This is an almost daily occurrence and the HSE has been targeted this time around. When it comes to cybersecurity, the hardest part is that these hackers are state sponsored and most likely come from North Korea, Russia or China, « said a cybersecurity source.
Reminder to HSE staff: turn off your work PC or Laptop not one. If you have switched on your PC or laptop, please switch it off. pic.twitter.com/HUpLwUDbnc
Devices in intensive care units and other independent infrastructures in hospitals were not affected by the attack. However, computers used to monitor scans cannot be turned on due to a cautious approach. and lab test results could potentially be delayed.
« We are at a very early stage to fully understand the threat and impact, » Reid said on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland before 8am. A list of health services that are operating and not operating was released at lunchtime.
« [At the moment] everyone should keep checking in [for hospital appointments] until they hear something else from us affected services, « Reid said.
Later, Reid spoke to RTÉ’s Six One News about providing updates on the current situation to patients and service users throughout the weekend on Monday.
» We are assessing the impact on each of our national and local systems, « he said. « Before we can go into the recovery phase, we need to be sure that if we talk to her we will not put her at risk again. »
Anne O’Connor, HSE’s chief operations officer, said this was a « day- Null « attack, which means it was a new cyber virus that got past its anti-virus system.
» We had no warning, we don’t know what it is … It is not an experience The risk for us is that when we turn it on, a system will come in. «
Secretary of State Smyth said that now cybersecurity teams that supported the HSE walked step by step through the HSE network were deleting it and reopened it. This would continue all weekend and possibly beyond.
Signs are that it is « high impact but potentially low portability » targeting the core of the HSE system: backups and everything what controls user data.
O’Connor adds e added that this would be particularly difficult because « we don’t even know who to cancel » as they currently have no access to their IT system.
Planned Covid-19 tests are carried out as planned, the HSE said – but the referral system for general practitioners and close contact testing is down, so walk-in centers may have to be used.
The Covid-19 vaccination program was not affected by the attack, and people should attend these appointments as usual .
Tonight Reid said the vaccine registration portal was closed for a short time, but access was restored to those aged 50 to 69 that evening to register for their vaccine.
The children and family agency Tusla released a statement that their emails, internal systems and the portal through which referrals are made for child protection are not working.
Anyone who makes a referral about a child can do so by contacting the local Tusla office near them. Details of the local offices can be found here.
Health Secretary Stephen Donnelly said he and Reid are working to ensure that HSE systems and information are protected.
« This is having a serious impact on our health today. and social services, but individual services and hospital groups are affected in different ways. The rescue services will continue, as will the national rescue service. “
The list of services that have been and are not affected by the cyber attack can be found here.
At the meeting of the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) this afternoon, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Tony Holohan that the problem « hinders » the ability of HSE to conduct their Covid-19 tests as usual.
Dr. Holohan urged people to continue to adhere to « basic public health news » when a person has symptoms such as self-isolation, even if they have to wait longer to get a test and result.
« Me don’t know when this will be resolved … people are working to correct this asap. «
Dr. Holohan added that the HSE is making arrangements so that people have access to testing, including walk-through centers.
He added that the problem has also affected the Department of Health, as they were unable to send or receive emails today.
# Open journalism
No news is bad news
Support the journal
Your contributions help us further
to deliver the stories that matter to you
Support us now
Your contributions help us further
to deliver the stories that matter to you
The Rotunda Maternity Hospital in Dublin has canceled all non-urgent appointments, and other hospitals are likely to be affected.
Rotunda Hospital Master Professor Fergal Malone told Morning Ireland that electronic health record enrollment has been initiated and the ability to access patient data are the problem.
He said a contingency plan had been put in place to revert to the “old-fashioned” paper-based system, but added that “throughput is much slower that way would be « .
In a separate statement released this morning, a Rotunda spokesman said: » All appointments have been canceled for this Friday, May 14th. The only exception is patients who are 36 weeks pregnant or older.
“Otherwise, you will be asked NOT to attend the rotunda unless it is an emergency. The rotunda will provide updated information as soon as possible. “
In a statement that evening, the Rotunda said your appointment for Monday 17th and Tuesday 18th May will be canceled if you are less than 36 weeks pregnant.
Regarding Pediatric appointments for babies older than two weeks, the appointment for Monday or Tuesday is canceled. « If you’re not sure if this affects you, please call our hotline on 01 211 9351 to speak to a midwife or doctor, » said the hospital.
The National Maternity Hospital on Holles Street said that there will be « significant disruption » to his services today.
« If you have an appointment / need to go to the hospital, please come as usual. We ask you to contact us, ”it said.
The National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) and Gardaí are working with the HSE on this topic. The NCSC also works with the EU and other international agencies.
600px wide
400px wide
300px wide
Notify me of further comments by email
TheJournal.ie supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and the Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff work within the Code of Practice. You can get a copy of the Code or contact the Council at www.presscouncil.ie, PH: (01) 6489130, Lo-Call 1890 208 080 or by email: [email protected]
Please note that TheJournal.ie uses cookies to improve your experience and to provide services and advertising. For more information on cookies, please see our Cookie Policy.
News images from Press Association and Photocall Ireland unless otherwise stated. Irish sports images are provided by Inpho Photography unless otherwise noted. Associated Press wired service.
Journal Media controls and is not responsible for any user-generated content, posts, comments, posts, or preferences. Users are reminded that they are fully and fully responsible for their own content, posts, comments and contributions, and that Journal Media is fully and effectively responsible for their ability to make such content, posts, comments and contributions available guarantee and compensate. Journal Media does not control and is not responsible for the content of external websites.
Switch to Mobile Site
Websites:
TheJournal.ie |
Noteworthy |
The42 |
Boards.ie |
Adverts.ie |
Daft.ie
HSE confirms that ransom money has been requested for cyber attacks, but says it will not be paid. Comments
Keywords:
