Ireland's health service is still experiencing significant problems, even three weeks after the ransomware attack against it.
See also: Russian hackers behind the ransomware attack on JBS?
The Health Service Executive (HSE), which is responsible for healthcare and social services across Ireland, shut down all of its IT systems after an attack last month.
Many of these systems were shut down in order to stop the spread of the ransomware, which the HSE described as a variant of the Conti ransomware.
The health service pledged not to pay the ransom, which amounted to 20 million in Bitcoin, and the High Court in Dublin issued an injunction against the Conti group in an attempt to prevent criminals from leaking stolen data because it was not paid.
The HSE has been providing regular updates following the cyberattack and even three weeks after the initial incident, services in Ireland continue to experience “significant impacts and disruptions to their services.”
See also: FBI links JBS ransomware attack to REvil gang
Essential and emergency services, including COVID-19 vaccinations, are operating, but patients are still being warned that they may face delays and cancellations of their appointments because “systems are not operating as usual” due to “critical IT systems” that are still down.
Services like blood tests and diagnostics are taking much longer than usual because the shutdown means doctors, nurses and other staff are relying on manual processes in the meantime.
According to the HSE, this is expected to continue for “several weeks” as efforts are made to safely restore 2,000 IT systems, each consisting of infrastructure, multiple servers and devices affected by the ransomware, based on clinical priority.
The HSE warned the public that criminals could attempt to exploit confusion and concerns about the security of their medical data to fraud and defraud patients.
See also: Massachusetts: Steamship Authority victim of ransomware attack
The rise in ransomware attacks has led the White House to urge organizations to take the threat posed by cybercriminals seriously.
“All organizations must recognize that no company is safe from ransomware targeting, regardless of size or location,” said Anne Neuberger, deputy assistant to the president and deputy national security adviser for cybersecurity and emerging technology.
“Just as our homes have locks and alarm systems and our office buildings have guards and security to address the threat of theft, we urge you to take ransomware seriously and ensure that your corporate cyber defense is up to the challenge.“
