Cyber Attacks Hit UK Health System

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Facts

  • A cyber attack has disrupted medical services at several UK National Health Service (NHS) hospitals, including Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust as well as King's College Hospital Trust.1
  • The attack, which targeted the pathology services provider Synnovis, also forced delayed operations at Royal Brompton and the Evelina London Children’s Hospital. While some medical procedures were canceled, others were directed to different hospitals.2
  • Synnovis, which is a partnership between SYNLAB UK & Ireland and the affected hospitals, provides services such as diagnosing disease and proposing treatments. Hospitals said there will be a 'major impact' on blood transfusions.3
  • As the attack disconnected hospitals from their main online server with Synnovis, Sky News technology and science editor Tom Clarke said the hospitals — which have declared a 'critical incident' — will have to 'proceed with pen and paper' for work such as 'the matching of blood.'4
  • The Synnovis website says it's 'one of the largest pathology service providers in the UK' and offers better services through 'faster testing' and 'state-of-the-art laboratories.'4
  • This cyberattack comes after Synlab Group, a German company with subsidiaries across Europe, faced a ransomware attack from hacker group Clop at its French branch in June 2023. Clop has also hacked the payroll provider of companies, including British Airways and the British Broadcasting Corporation.1

Sources: 1Guardian, 2BBC News, 3The Telegraph and 4Sky News.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Puredome. Despite its acclaimed implementation of cybersecurity, SYNLAB has now faced multiple cyber attacks just this year. With healthcare data hacks costing an average of over $10M, the industry must face the reality that more must be done. Whether they like it or not, vital medical service providers are at the forefront of this fight and they must take action accordingly.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Nextgov.com. While protecting patients at all costs is of the utmost importance, it should also be noted that paying ransom to hackers may not be the best immediate solution. For companies to make meaningful change, they must focus on both cybersecurity and not giving these criminals what they want. Hackers must be shown that disrupting the medical industry is not profitable.

Predictions