"Osaka Hospital Halts Services After Ransomware Attack"

A major hospital in Osaka, Japan, has suspended routine medical services following a ransomware cyberattack that disrupted its electronic medical record systems.  Osaka General Medical Center officials stated that emergency operations are continuing.  During an investigation, the investigator found that the system had been attacked by a ransomware computer virus, with the threat actor allegedly sending an email in English to the hospital's server and demanding a ransom in Bitcoin.  The hospital's director, Takeshi Shimazu, stated that the Center staff are working to restore the system and using paper medical records until the incident is resolved, as the attack has made it very difficult to calculate medical treatment fees or check details of patients' medical histories.  Simon Chassar, CRO at Claroty, stated that with organizations continuing to connect cyber-physical systems to their networks, ransomware attacks against the healthcare industry will only increase.  Chassar noted that organizations need to close their security gaps and have complete asset visibility across all their cyber-physical systems by implementing patching procedures for OT systems, IoT, and IoMT (Internet of Medical Things) devices.  The hospital, operated by the Osaka Prefectural Hospital Organization, currently counts 865 beds and 36 departments.

Infosecurity reports: "Osaka Hospital Halts Services After Ransomware Attack"