IT systems at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children are close to being put back into production After last month’s ransomware attack,
The hospital said on Thursday that about 80 percent of the primary systems, which have a direct impact on hospital operations, have been restored. As a result it has rescinded its Code Grey, a designation for employees with major system problems.
The hospital’s electronic medical record (EMR) system was not affected by the attack, but other systems that integrate with the EMR were affected.dictation services, the pharmacy system, and the ability to view diagnostic imaging results were temporarily unavailable. The hospital said in a news release that most of the systems integrated with the EMR have been restored.
A Several corporate systems were also temporarily affected, including the hospital’s internal timekeeping system for employees and its intranet. Some systems, such as the AboutKidsHealth website, are still being restored.
“The hospital has determined that patients and families are unlikely to experience any significant impact to the care they receive,” and most clinical teams are no longer using downtime procedures, the statement said.
The hospital said there is no evidence to date that personal information or personal health information has been affected.
It insisted that no ransom has been paid to the Lockbit ransomware gang. Thirteen days after the attack, the gang issued an apology for attacking the hospital, saying that actually hacking an affiliate had violated its rules about which organizations could be targeted and how. The rules say attackers can steal data from hospitals, but encrypting the data is forbidden.
In addition to the apology, Lockbit made a decryptor available to SickKids. The hospital says it hasn’t used that device yet. ,sick child continues to consult with its third-party experts to determine the most efficient and effective means of restoring its affected systems, including the possible use of Decryptor,” the hospital said.
“Ransomware and other malware attacks are becoming more and more frequent and sophisticated across organizations and industries,” Nimira Dhalwani, the hospital’s chief technology officer, said in the statement. ,We know that those behind these attacks are always trying to find new ways to bypass digital defenses. Our cyber security measures meet a high standard, and we are confident that the security measures and procedures we have in place enable us to react quickly to minimize impacts to hospital operations. Wherever possible, we are working with our experts and industry partners to strengthen our collective systems.
