Irish health system struggles after attack

Ireland’s health system was still struggling to restore its computers and treat patients on Tuesday, four days after it shut down its entire IT system in response to a cyberattack.

Thousands of diagnostic appointments, cancer treatment clinics and surgeries have been canceled or delayed since a ransomware attack on Friday. Authorities said hundreds of people have been deployed to tackle the attack, but it could be weeks before the health service can return to normal.

Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said Tuesday that the attack was a “heinous” one that targeted patients and “the Irish public.” Health Service Executive chief clinical officer Colm Henry said the attack had had “a profound impact on our ability to deliver care,” and that the disruptions would undoubtedly “mount in the coming days and weeks.”

More than 2,000 patientfacing IT systems are affected, with around 80,000 devices linked to such systems throughout the health service, Henry told Irish broadcaster RTE. Authorities are prioritizing systems involving direct patient care diagnostics, such as radiology, radiotherapy and maternity and newborn services.

“That’s what our experts are focusing on this week, with external help, to ensure those services are not reliant on manual exchange of information,” he said.

Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victims’ networks, and demand a large payment to decrypt it. Irish officials say a ransom has been demanded but they will not pay it.

Conti, a Russian-speaking ransomware group, was demanding $20 million, according to the ransom negotiation page on its darknet site viewed by The Associated Press. The gang threatened Monday to “start publishing and selling your private information very soon” if the money was not paid.

“The government will not be paying any money,” Justice Minister Heather Humphreys told RTE. “We will not be blackmailed.”