A ransomware attack has forced Ireland’s nationwide health service to shut down all IT systems, the HSE disclosed this morning.
HSE is short for Health Services Executive -- a publicly funded healthcare system that serves the Republic of Ireland.
In a tweet from the HSE, the organization said:
“There is a significant ransomware attack on the HSE IT systems. We have taken the precaution of shutting down all our our IT systems in order to protect them from this attack and to allow us fully assess the situation with our own security partners.”
HSE Ransomware Attack: Details and Recovery Efforts
Covid-19 vaccinations are not impacted by the attack, a follow-up tweet indicated. Also, the attack has not impacted equipment in hospitals, which run separately from HSE's data systems, RTE reports.
The HSE did not mention specific security partners or MSSPs (managed security services providers) by name. Also, the organization did not disclose what type of ransomware attack the healthcare organization's network.
The HSE has an annual budget of roughly €16.05 billion (US$19.43 billion) and 67,000 employees, according to Wikipedia.
How MSSPs Can Mitigate Ransomware
MSSPs seeking to mitigate potential DarkSide ransomware threats for customers should see this joint CISA-FBI Cybersecurity Advisory about the malware, which surfaced May 11, 2021.
MSSPs working with the U.S. federal government should also read President Biden’s executive order on cybersecurity — which includes specific cyber requirements and deadlines for IT service providers. Biden issued the order on May 12, 2021.
