Adrian Johnson
TLDR:
- Ascension hospitals and facilities experienced a cyber attack disrupting clinical operations.
- It is unclear how much information was put at risk or if personal patient information was obtained.
Operations at Ascension hospitals and facilities were disrupted due to a suspected cyber attack. The health care system, which runs multiple hospitals across 19 states, reported that “clinical operations” were disrupted after “unusual activity” was detected in their system. The scope of the impact was not yet known, and they were working with a third-party expert to investigate the incident.
Officials confirmed that some of Ascension’s systems were interrupted due to the cyber attack, but it was not explicitly stated which systems were affected. Patient care was impacted, but efforts were made to ensure care delivery continued as safely as possible, despite the cyber attack.
Ascension did not confirm if the cyber security issue was ransomware, but ransomware attacks have become a growing problem in the U.S. with hospitals being a large target. Cyber attacks and data breaches have been on the rise globally, with experts recommending steps to protect personal information, such as creating strong passwords and enabling multi-factor authentication.
If someone is hacked, experts advise disconnecting the device from the internet immediately, changing all passwords, monitoring financial information, and reporting the incident to the appropriate authorities. It is important to be cautious and stay vigilant to protect against potential cyber attacks.
