Irish Health Service Hit by 'Very Sophisticated' Ransomware Attack 

DUBLIN, IRELAND - Ireland's health service operator shut down all its IT systems Friday to protect them from a ransomware attack, which crippled diagnostic services and disrupted COVID-19 testing.

An international cybercrime gang was behind the attack, said Ossian Smyth, Ireland's minister responsible for e-government. Smyth described it as possibly the most significant cybercrime attempt against the Irish state. Ireland's COVID-19 vaccination program was not directly affected, but the attack was affecting IT systems serving all other local and national health provisions, the head of the Health Service Executive (HSE) said. Ransomware attacks typically involve the infection of computers with malicious software, often downloaded by clicking on seemingly innocuous links in emails or other website pop-ups. Users are left locked out of their systems, with the demand that a ransom be paid to restore computer functions.