First case of patient death reported as a result of hospital ransomware attack

A German hospital was the target of a ransomware attack that restricted access to the system and required a ransom, resulting in the death of a patient in transit as it became unacceptable. This is believed to be the first case of a direct death toll as a result of a cyberattack on a hospital.

German Hospital Hacked, Patient Taken to Another City Dies | SecurityWeek.Com
https://www.securityweek.com/german-hospital-hacked-patient-taken-another-city-dies

First death reported following a ransomware attack on a German hospital | ZDNet
https://www.zdnet.com/article/first-death-reported-following-a-ransomware-attack-on-a-german-hospital/

Woman dies during a ransomware attack on a German hospital --The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2020/9/17/21443851/death-ransomware-attack-hospital-germany-cybersecurity

On September 10, 2020, Germany's Dusseldorf University Hospital announced that it had been hit by a ransomware attack. It is said that 30 servers in the hospital were infected with ransomware by this attack. Investigations have shown that the ransomware infection was 'a vulnerability in widely used commercial add-on software.'

Krankenhaus derzeit nur sehr eingeschränkt erreichbar – Patientenversorgung eingeschränkt ǀ UKD
https://www.uniklinik-duesseldorf.de/ueber-uns/pressemitteilungen/detail/krankenhaus-derzeit-nur-sehr-eingeschraenkt-erreichbar-patientenversorgung-eingeschraenkt

One of the female patients being transferred to the Dusseldorf University Hospital was urged to be transferred to another hospital because the system went down, saying it was 'unacceptable'. The newly decided destination is 30 km away from Dusseldorf University Hospital, and the start of treatment was delayed by one hour, so the patient disappeared after arriving at the hospital. This is believed to be the world's first case of deaths directly affected by a ransomware attack on a hospital.

Ransomware attacks usually involve a ransom demand, but the attack did not directly require the hospital to ransom. According to German news media RTL.DE , the ransom request was sent to a nearby university instead of a hospital. And after authorities told the attacker that the attack had affected the hospital and put the patient at risk, the attacker stopped the ransomware attack and gave him a digital key to decrypt the data. It is reported to have provided.

The perpetrator of the ransomware attack has not been arrested, and the prosecution will begin an investigation for manslaughter.

In recent years, cyber attacks targeting medical institutions have been increasing, and it is regarded as particularly dangerous.

It turns out that the damage of the ransomware 'SamSam' that aims at medical institutions and demands a ransom by taking the data in the PC as a hostage is spreading --GIGAZINE

by NEC Corporation of America

The ransomware 'WannaCry', which became a pandemic all over the world in 2017, also affected the hospital system in the United Kingdom, and the order of surgery was readjusted.

It is clear that the ransomware 'WannaCry' that has infected more than 200,000 people is getting about 3 million yen as a ransom --GIGAZINE

by 401 (K) 2012

Studies have also shown that hospital mortality rates for heart attacks will increase years after the data breach, as hospitals will be forced to upgrade their software and the actions doctors should take will change. Has been done . It has been pointed out that attacks targeting patient data, even if not directly targeting medical devices, can also lead to increased patient mortality.