Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) announced on Friday that it is investigating a significant data breach following a cyber attack on a London-based blood testing lab. Hackers allegedly released confidential information from several major hospitals after demanding a ransom from Synnovis, the lab company targeted in the attack.
The cyber attack, which occurred on June 3, has disrupted services at prominent London hospitals, including Guy’s, St Thomas’, and King’s College Hospital. The NHS reported that more than 1,000 elective procedures and 2,000 appointments have been cancelled due to the reduced capacity in test processing.
“NHS England has been made aware that the cyber criminal group published data last night which they are claiming belongs to Synnovis and was stolen as part of this attack,” the NHS stated. “We understand that people may be concerned by this and we are continuing to work with Synnovis, the National Cyber Security Centre, and other partners to determine the content of the published files as quickly as possible.”
The BBC reported that the hackers had demanded a ransom from Synnovis and, after not receiving payment, released sensitive data, including names, dates of birth, and NHS numbers, on a Telegram channel on Thursday night.
The NHS emphasized its commitment to safeguarding patient data and mitigating the impact of the attack. “We are deeply concerned about this breach and the potential implications for our patients. Ensuring the security and integrity of patient information is our top priority,” said an NHS spokesperson.
