Cybercriminals have demanded a ransom payment of $4.5 Million not to release sensitive data from a Hospital Clinic in Barcelona Spain
The criminals behind the cyber attack on the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona have demanded a ransom of 4.5 million dollars (€4.2M) NOT to release or publish the data they have obtained from the centre, reported the Secretary for Telecommunications and Digital Transformation of the Generalitat, Sergi Marcén.
“There is no type of negotiation, the Government will not pay a cent,” Marcén said at a press conference this Friday, March 10, in which he stated that they do not know what type of data the perpetrators of the attack have who say they have four terabytes of information.
The hospital’s medical director, Antoni Castells, regretted that due to the cyberattack, more than 4,000 outpatient tests, more than 300 surgeries and more than 11,000 outpatient visits have stopped since Sunday.
However, the medical director has claimed the “huge effort” of the centre and its workers to recover 90% of complex surgical activity, 40% of less complex surgical activity and 70% of outpatient visits.
“Little by little we are going back to normality”, affirmed Castells, who has reiterated the apologies of the centre for the inconveniences that it has caused its patients, such as some radiotherapy that they have not been able to attend to 25 patients have continued their treatment at the Hospital de la Santa Creu I Sant Pau and others have started it between Sant Pau and the Vall d’Hebron Hospital.
Cybercriminals are individuals or groups who commit crimes using the internet or other digital technologies. They use various techniques to target individuals, organizations, and even governments to access sensitive information, steal data, extort money, or disrupt normal operations. Some of the common types of cybercrime include hacking, phishing, identity theft, ransomware, and distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks.
Cybercriminals often operate from countries with weak cybersecurity laws or those that do not have extradition treaties with other countries. They constantly evolve their techniques to evade detection and stay ahead of law enforcement agencies. As digital technologies become more advanced, the threat posed by cybercriminals continues to grow, making it essential for individuals and organizations to take proactive measures to safeguard themselves against such attacks.
Update: Thanks to the coordinated work between the Hospital Systems Department and the Cybersecurity Agency of Catalonia, we have managed to build 15% of the hospital’s systems. The contingency systems have made it possible to recover in these four days 90% of the complex surgical activity, 40% of the outpatient surgery, 70% of the external consultations and the stroke and heart attack codes.
From the first day, the emergencies have been maintained at all three of theirs, including the code 3 of care for victims of sexual assault. Hospitalization and hospitalization at home have also been maintained. The ambulatory pharmacy also works from the first day.
Pharmacy prescriptions and requests have been made on paper. Apheresis, outpatient rehabilitation, the colon cancer screening program and the International Traveler Assistance Service (SAVI) are operating normally. On the other hand, the Institute of Diagnostic Imaging (IDI) collaborates with the CDI in interpreting the images.
Care activity throughout the week has suffered. More than 4,000 outpatient tests, 300 surgeries, and more than 11,000 outpatient visits have been stopped. Radiation oncology patients have been referred to the hospitals of Sant Pau and Vall Hebrón. “This cyberattack has isolated the hospital from outside, from our patients.
There is no doubt about the commitment of the hospital professionals, who have made a great effort to recover activity by working with difficulties and in a very manual way”, points out Dr.
Read more: Andalucía invests 18 million to shield against cyberattacks
