Computer Virus Cripples UK Hospital System
Summary: The National Health Service's Lincolnshire and Goole trust shut down most of its systems after a virus infected them on Sunday, October 30, canceling all planned operations, outpatient appointments and diagnostic procedures for Wednesday, November 2 and diverting major trauma cases and high-risk women in labor to neighboring hospitals. The NHS did not name the malware, though the article notes it was likely ransomware, and the incident came as U.K. Chancellor Philip Hammond unveiled a national cybersecurity strategy warning that hostile foreign actors were developing techniques threatening the electrical grid and airports.
Bottom line: Intel Security reported the healthcare sector was seeing over 20 data loss incidents per day from ransomware and identified almost $100,000 in payments from hospital victims to specific bitcoin accounts in 2016 - and this outbreak forced a trust to stop treating planned surgical patients entirely.
Read the original at Krebs on Security ↗
- Topics
- Data Breaches
- Related
- TSMC employee data breach linked to cloud provider Cyber Risks · Nov 15, 2026Data Breach at La Poste Subsidiary Maileva Affects 22 Million People in France Cyber Risks · Nov 15, 2026City of Osaka warns of data breach impacting 1 million as Japan reels from dozens of cyber incidents Cyber Risks · Nov 13, 2026