Israel said Wednesday (October 13th) that it had suffered "
for the first time
" in its history a "
major
" ransomware
cyberattack
against a public hospital, forced to use "
alternative systems
" to continue operating.
The Jewish state "is
experiencing a completely unexpected major attack
" on ransomware, Ygal Unna, director of the Israel Cyber Security Agency, said during a virtual summit dedicated to international cooperation in the fight against ransomware.
Read also Cyberattacks against hospitals: greed for hackers, danger of death for patients
Ransomware exploits security holes in a company or individual to encrypt and block their computer systems, demanding a ransom to unlock them.
1 in 5 Israeli companies already affected
"
We are trying to find a solution but it does not look very good,
" said Ygal Unna, who added that it was the "
first time in Israel
" that a hospital has been targeted by this type of attack.
Hillel Yaffe hospital in Hadera (center) said in a statement "
use alternative systems to treat patients
" following the attack.
According to data presented by the Israel Cyber Security Agency in July, one in five businesses in Israel has been the target of a cyber attack, causing damage 20% of the time.
Other countries have already suffered cyber attacks using ransomware against hospitals, such as Germany, France or Ireland.
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