Ransomware Hits Over 100 Romanian Hospitals; Patients Grapple with Disruption

A ransomware assault has targeted more than a hundred healthcare facilities in Romania, prompting some medical practitioners to resort to traditional pen and paper methods. The attack, which impacted children’s hospitals and emergency centres, compelled various institutions to go offline as a precautionary measure.

The cybercriminals demanded a ransom of 3.5 bitcoins, equivalent to over £130,000, to decrypt crucial files they had encrypted. Fortunately, recent data backups mitigated the severity of the attack, according to Romanian cyber authorities.

The incident primarily unfolded overnight on Monday, as revealed by a statement from the Romanian Ministry of Health, with a widely utilized medical information system being the primary target. IT specialists, including cybersecurity experts from the National Cyber Security Directorate (DNSC), are investigating the attack.

Initial reports from DNSC indicate that 25 hospitals, starting with Pitesti Paediatric Hospital, fell victim to the ransomware. Additionally, 79 other healthcare establishments were temporarily shut down pending investigations into potential breaches.

Although the malware type has been identified, the perpetrating group remains unknown, as the ransom demand merely includes an email address. Thankfully, the majority of the targeted hospitals have recent data backups, facilitating a swift recovery process.

Nevertheless, the repercussions on patients could be significant, as numerous hospitals have disabled internet-connected devices as a preventive measure. This precautionary measure could impact not only booking systems and records but also vital medical equipment like MRI scanners.

This incident in Romania bears semblance to a similar attack experienced by the UK in 2017, which disrupted operations in 80 out of 236 hospital trusts across England, resulting in the cancellation or rescheduling of nearly 7,000 appointments. Subsequently, the NHS acknowledged the need for improvements and implemented various changes.

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