NHS cyber-attack hits GPs and hospitals in England

I have a feeling this is not going to end well it was only a matter of time before something like this happened.

Red in full - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39899646

Analysis: Chris Baraniuk, technology reporter
Software that locks a computer and demands payment before allowing access again - ransomware - is one of the world's biggest growing cyber-threats.
It certainly looks like that is what has hit the NHS in this case - and one IT firm says 11 of its NHS customers have been affected.

Screenshots shared online purportedly from NHS staff, show a program demanding $300 (£230) in Bitcoin that looks similar to ransomware known as WannaCryptor or WCry.
There's no indication of who is behind the attack yet, nor do we know exactly how it infected NHS systems.
But hospitals have been targeted with similar software before - it struck three US hospitals last year.

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A GP from a surgery in York said: "We received a call from York CCG [Clinical Commissioning Group] around an hour ago telling us to switch off all of our computers immediately.

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The phrase "Putting all your eggs in one basket" springs to mind.

Perhaps if the government invested more in the NHS we wouldn't have the same risks.


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pvt_ak said:

Perhaps if the government invested more in the NHS we wouldn't have the same risks.

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And over £115 billion on NHS spending isn't enough?
The NHS is a vast money pit that need sorting out, not more money chucking at it willy nilly.

I don't bother with the Beeb now, all the best bits are on HBF in no time at all, particularly if it's incompetence, rudeness or just plain stupid!,,,,:lol:

terrym said:

And over £115 billion on NHS spending isn't enough?
The NHS is a vast money pit that need sorting out, not more money chucking at it willy nilly.

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No it's not. Have you experienced a visit to the NHS recently to see the stress they're under ?

You'll be suggesting we lose our one great wonder of the UK next and go private.




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pvt_ak said:

Perhaps if the government invested more in the NHS we wouldn't have the same risks.

Click to expand...

And over £115 billion a year on NHS spending isn't enough?
The NHS is a vast money pit that need sorting out, not more money chucking at it willy nilly.

I immediately thought they had not been taking security seriously enough but a guy on the radio has just been saying this was not a targeted attack he called it a drive by attack and this one is so new it could have been any company or person that got caught and more will follow, they are demanding $230 for a key to allow staff to take control sounds cheap i thought but it turns out that is for every computer :shock:

What is ransomware?

Computer viruses that threaten to delete your files unless you pay a ransom are known as ransomware.
Security experts have warned that ransomware is the fastest growing form of computer virus.
Like other computer viruses, it usually finds its way onto a device by exploiting a security hole in vulnerable software or by tricking somebody into installing it.

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Ransomeware attacks are not new

We had to deal with one last year

absolute nightmare but after 2 3 days we were back to normal.

New strains appear all the time and sadly every so often they are one step of the game and someone does something stupid. Ransomeware spreads on network shares so it can be very contageous.

Wifes hospital not affected.

You are right Covrich when i said "this one is so new it could have been any company or person that got caught and more will follow" i meant this is a new version of it not an new type of threat.

:hmm: nobody seems to be arguing about gender equality or Brexit yet... has THBF been h4x0r3d? :hmm:

Pity the bastards dont attack the DWP every day.

Tanzanite said:

Pity the bastards dont attack the DWP every day.

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I thought they had already and that's why DWP is so ****e 🤣


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I phoned up to re-schedule a GP appointment for one of my clients today and they told me they had come under cyber attack and couldn't access their computer systems. I thought WTF, cyber men attacking the NHS? What next a darlek invasion?

This is not restricted to the NHS. Apparently at least 74 countries have been affected by this attack.

geigercntr said:

:hmm: nobody seems to be arguing about gender equality or Brexit yet... has THBF been h4x0r3d? :hmm:

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Brexit voters have blamed the attack on immigrants

Remain voters are that appalled they have arranged a march in protest , however are adamant that the virus should have rights to settle here.

Diane Abbot estimates the cost of the damage to be about fifty seven quid.

Jeremey Hunt says everything is proceeding well.

Better?

Covrich said:

Brexit voters have blamed the attack on immigrants

Remain voters are that appalled they have arranged a march in protest , however are adamant that the virus should have rights to settle here.

Diane Abbot estimates the cost of the damage to be about fifty seven quid.

Jeremey Hunt says everything is proceeding well.

Better?

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:Phew: ....aaand relax... :)

How on earth did we manage before computers?

We lost the odd document not all of them :wink:

pvt_ak said:

No it's not. Have you experienced a visit to the NHS recently to see the stress they're under ?
You'll be suggesting we lose our one great wonder of the UK next and go private.

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The NHS is very much is a vast money pit that needs sorting out as I said. And the solution is not to keep chucking money at it again as I said. It desperately needs sorting out or matters will continue to deteriorate.
The fundamental problem is that it is so big (budget I quoted, significantly more than a million staff) that an overhaul is daunting. So the easy solution is to leave it alone, or just tickle the edges.
And the other problem is that it is a sacred cow. Anyone who is perceived as anti-NHS is vilified. So politicians pander to the popular conception that all you have to do to make it better is increase the budget, or put forward populist ideas like making car parking free which does little to address the core problems.
And to directly comment on your reply.
I occasionally visit NHS places. I see lots of hard working and dedicated staff, state of the art equipment in many places, but I also see people in non jobs, and inefficiencies, which needs addressing. I have in the past used private medical facilities and I see they can do the same job with less staff, that's a fact as far as I am concerned, so why can't the NHS be the same?
And yes perhaps some NHS staff are in stressful positions, but then so are other people in non NHS jobs, and then not everyone in the NHS is stressed out, a visit to your GP surgery or local hospital will quickly confirm that.
And for you to believe that I would suggest that we should lose the NHS and 'go private' that's got nothing to do with my comments, so you have clearly failed to understand what I am saying.