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The NHS Cyber Attack Makes Things Worse

The NHS cyberattack has hit the system hard. The IT experts in the UK are still working to retrieve the systems entirely. Ransomware has affected the health services in the latest NHS cyber attack.

Extent of the NHS Cyber Attack

The NHS cyber attack hit around 40 organizations in the UK. The cyber hack also affected GP practitioners in Scotland and England. The hack resulted in the cancellation of many appointments with the doctor.

The British Prime Minister points out that the NHS cyber attack is of international magnitude. Many British hospitals were unable to access vital patient data as a result of the attack. She also said that National Cyber Security Centre is working in sync with NHS Digital to support the affected organizations. The Prime Minister of Great Britain also insists there is no evidence of patient data leak.

Nature of the NHS Cyber Attack

The cyber security experts believe that it is a sophisticated cyber attack on the National Health Service. The attacker who launched a ransomware demanded payment of £230 in some instances.

The NHS Digital says that there is no proof that the attack compromised confidential patient data. The hackers wanted to have their ransomware in virtual currency, Bitcoin. The identity of the hackers remains hidden so far.

Diversion of the Ambulances

The NHS Cyber Attack Makes Things WorseBesides the ransomware, the NHS cyberattack got some of the ambulances diverted. Similarly, reports suggest disruption of few GP surgeries.

Extent of the Attack

Some of the cyber security experts claim it is one of the biggest ransomware attacks in the history. Experts suggest over 55000 infections were found in 100 countries as a result of this attack.

The precise identity of the hackers is unknown, but cyber security experts point their fingers to Shadow Brokers. They say the Shadow Brokers is partly responsible for the NHS cyberattack. The attackers allegedly stole US NSA’s cyber tools and used them to proceed with their hack.

National Health Service Remains Vulnerable

In March this year, Microsoft sent National Health Service free software. Microsoft has announced that it will provide automatic Windows updates for defending its client.

A startling revelation says that around 90 percent of the NHS employees still use Windows XP operating system. Windows XP is an old operating system with a lot of vulnerabilities. Some of the computers NHS started using back in 2007 were worse affected.

Cyber security analysts believe that National Health Service is prone to attacks as many employees still use the old operating system. Similarly, they also argue that the failure of some employees to update their recent operating system versions made them susceptible to NHS cyberattack.

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